


Loves Me Not

by bluemermaid54



Category: Disney Fairies
Genre: Eventual Romance, F/M, Fluff, Humor, Hurt/Comfort
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-03-27
Updated: 2020-12-07
Packaged: 2021-03-01 09:27:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 19
Words: 84,438
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23349151
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/bluemermaid54/pseuds/bluemermaid54
Summary: Tinker Bell takes Terence to her favorite little shop full of whimsical trinkets and inventions. They find an old, grey flower that begins to color and glow for the first time in years, and they have no idea why.The two of them begin to delve into the mystery of the glowing flower, while also navigating their growing feelings for each other
Relationships: Terence/Tinker Bell (Disney Fairies)
Comments: 36
Kudos: 41





	1. 1

It was a bright, summery day in Pixie Hollow as Tinker Bell and her good friend Terence flew together side by side over Needlepoint Meadow, on their way to an old trinkets shop where fairies could trade in lost things or other whimsical items for antiques, inventions, or enchanted objects. 

“I think you’re gonna like Fairy Mo,” said Tink, grinning at Terence. Her blue eyes sparkled with excitement, and the sun lit up her blonde bun from behind with her bangs flapping in the wind. Terence thought she looked quite pretty. 

“Oh, really? What’s he like?” 

“Well, he likes lost things, and luckily I got plenty of them.” Tinker Bell gestured to the sack around her waist. “And he’s actually a Tinker fairy, too. He liked Tinkering so much that he decided to open up his own pawn shop dedicated to displaying all his strange inventions.” 

“That’s awesome!” said Terence. “I’ve always wondered what it would be like to invent stuff.” 

“But you _do_ invent stuff,” insisted Tinker Bell. “With me, all the time. Terence, you’re a natural. You’re practically a tinker, too.” 

Terence felt himself blushing. He wasn’t used to receiving compliments like this from Tink. It got him feeling all flushed and embarrassed. 

“Yeah . . . Well, how far are we from the shop, anyway?” he asked, changing the subject. Tink smirked. 

“Almost there, follow me!” 

She flew faster, did a little loop around a tree, and soared above the leaves, catching the wind as she extended her arms. Terence struggled to keep up. 

“C’mon, slowpoke!” she called. Terence flew noticeably faster. “I still gotta to work on the Pixie Dust Express with Clank and Bobble after this!” 

“Another one after last time?” Terence asked, cocking an eyebrow. Tink rolled her eyes. 

“For your information, _Terence_ , this time we have way more resources, and more time, and instead of giving it legs we put more power behind the motor. Its design is practically flawless.” 

Terence tssked at her, shrugging. “We’ll see about that.” 

“Fine, I guess you _won’t_ get to be our first test subject,” said Tink lightly, folding her arms, turning her head up stubbornly. 

“No, no, I do, Tink, I do,” Terence protested, laughing in spite of himself. “I’m sorry. Forgive me?” 

Tink sighed. “Alright, alright. Now, look off in the distance. See that brown, acorn-looking thingy?” 

Terence glanced up and saw the brown, acorn-looking thingy. 

“Yeah, is that it?” 

Tink smiled at him, and extended her hand for him to take. “Come on!” 

Terence couldn’t contain his smile as he reached out and took her hand. Tink flew them surprisingly fast, laughing all the rest of the way. 

_____

It had been a rather slow morning at the shop, Fairy Mo decided as he took a sip of his tea. He hadn’t had a single fairy come in, and was considering closing shop and taking the day off when he heard a rattle at the door, and the chorus of bells that signified someone came in. 

He looked up from the book he was reading, and as soon as he saw that golden bun he knew exactly who’d come to see him. He leaped with joy. 

“Well, hello, Tinker Bell! How are you?” 

“Hi there, Fairy Mo!” Tink greeted excitedly. “It’s your lucky day, I’ve brought someone.” 

A blonde sparrow man emerged through the door, smiling shyly. “Hi, I’m Terence,” he said. He looked around the shop. It had a sort of dusty feeling to it, like the shelves were kept clean enough to keep out rodents but still dirty enough to look weathered, and aged. Shelves stood tall with many layers all around the shop, filled with books and inventions and antiques. 

“Terence likes lost things, too,” said Tink eagerly. “Terence, this is Fairy Mo. One of the oldest-” 

“Hey!” 

“-and _best_ tinkers I know.” 

“Oh.” He felt quite flattered. Tinker Bell really knew how to tickle a fairy’s heart. 

“Pleasure to meet you,” said Terence. He took another look around. “I like your shop.” 

“Thank you,” said Fairy Mo, beaming with pride. “I’m proud to say that over half the strange little trinkets you see in here are mine.” 

“That’s incredible. You seem like you’re a great inventor.” 

Fairy Mo laughed, embarrassed. “Why that’s very nice of you, I’m-” 

“Whatcha lookin at, Tink?” Terence had flown up to the upper half of the shelves where Tink was fluttering over something that Fairy Mo couldn’t see. 

“Terence, come look at this,” she said. 

Terence flew over to her, curious. Tink stood aside and pointed to the object that caught her eye. 

It was a flower, presumably a water lily, but it looked . . . Dead. Grey, frayed at the edges. A little more than worse for wear. He wondered why Tink was so interested in it. 

“It’s a . . . grey flower,” he said carefully, not wanting to upset her. 

“But it’s not dead,” Tinker Bell insisted. “Look! The petals aren’t shriveled up, the stem still looks healthy. It’s just . . . discolored. I wonder what happened to it.” 

Terence sighed. He didn’t see anything extraordinary in this flower. But if Tink liked it, he was willing to give it a chance. 

“I wonder how it got like this,” said Tink, continuing to inspect the flower. 

“It is strange,” agreed Terence. “We could take it back to your place and try some magic on it if you like.” 

No sooner than he spoke did the flower begin to rise above its home on the shelf, shocking the fairies. They both fluttered back, transfixed, as they watched the water lily. Its petals began to open, and the grey slowly began to fade, as a soft, faded pink washed over in its place. 

“Whoa . . .” said Terence softly. 

The flower was now a healthy, beautiful pink, and Terence detected a small trace of amber gold, almost like a glow, coating the edges. He was enchanted by the flower’s ethereal beauty. The two fairies sat in a comfortable silence, gazing at the water lily, basking in its glow. Tink turned to look at Terence. 

“Terence, it’s . . . glowing.” 

“By the Second Star-” 

“But why?” Tink’s curious tone cut through, severing the spell. Terence turned his gaze away from the flower to look at her. 

“Why is it glowing? What could it mean?” 

Here Tinker Bell went again, trying to solve the mystery and fix everything like usual, Terence thought. But he had to admit, now that it glowed this flower had started to take a hold on him, too. He wanted to learn more about it. 

Tinker Bell picked up the flower and flew back down to Fairy Mo, Terence in tow. 

“Fairy Mo,” she said eagerly, “look what we’ve found-” 

“Great heavens,” Fairy Mo breathed. _Could it be?_ “After all these years . . .” 

“A glowing flower!” Tink exclaimed. “Have you ever seen anything like it in your entire life?”

“That flower,” said Fairy Mo, “is old, ancient. And enchanted with one of the rarest, most powerful forms of magic in all of Neverland.” 

“What is it?” asked Tink and Terence at the same time. 

Fairy Mo could have sat them down and explained that the flower glowed a beautiful golden amber and didn’t go out until the day a certain fairy in his life passed away. But he didn’t. He decided, with a nod of his head, that he’d let Tinker Bell and her handsome young friend figure it out on their own. 

He smiled at them. 

“It was enchanted many, many years ago, by a very talented sorceress. Its power lives through her magic now, and will continue to glow until the magic expires.” 

“Expires . . .” Terence muttered. That was frustratingly vague. “I didn’t know magic could expire.” 

“What’s the magic?” Tink asked. 

“That,” said Fairy Mo, “is for you two to find out.” 

“What?” asked Terence, indignant. “You’re telling us that this flower is powered by the rarest form of magic in all of Neverland, and you won’t even tell us what it is?” 

“Don’t worry,” said Fairy Mo. “You’ll find out eventually.” 

Irritated, Terence looked at Tink. “Can I talk to you for a second?” 

He pulled her to the side, far enough away so that Fairy Mo couldn’t hear. 

“This flower seems suspicious,” he said, and Tink’s excited expression fell. 

“Suspicious? It is rather strange, but don’t you want to know more about it?” 

Terence had to admit he did, but his suspicion of the flower being riddled with dark magic overrode his curiosity. 

“Tink,” he said, “I think it might be dangerous.” 

“Dangerous?” Tink laughed. “How could it be dangerous?”

“Fairy Mo said it was enchanted with a rare form of magic,” he began. “What if it’s dark magic?” 

“Don’t be silly,” said Tink. She turned back toward Fairy Mo. 

“Wait, Tink, just think about it for a second,” said Terence. 

Tink turned back around, cocking a brow. “Huh? What’s there to think about?” she asks, sounding slightly irritated. “Terence, it’s a glowing flower. A _magic_ glowing flower. This could be the coolest lost thing we ever find. And you’re telling me to _think about it?”_

Terence narrowed his eyes at her. 

“You don’t know what kind of magic it possesses. It could be evil.” 

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you’re scared.” 

“I am not,” said Terence hotly. “Maybe you’re just so desperate to have something to fix, because no one at Pixie Hollow has needed you in months, that you’ll pick up the first strange, useless object you find.” 

Tinker Bell’s mouth dropped open in shock and she crossed her arms, turning away from him and glowering. 

Had he gone too far? 

Suddenly, to his dismay, the flower’s glow began to flicker. The bright, amber gold faded down to a sheer yellow, lingered for a moment, and then went out entirely. 

Fairy Mo felt deflated. _So it wasn’t after all_. 

“Uh, Tinker Bell,” he said cautiously, “you might want to check this out.” 

Tink turned back around, and Terence wasn’t at all surprised to see her cheeks painted red. 

“What is it, Fairy Mo?” she asked, trying as hard as she could to keep her tone in check. 

“The . . . The flower, it’s . . . it’s gone out.” 

The color evaporated from Tinker Bell’s face instantly once she saw the water lily, and she gasped, clutching the flower and holding it close. “Oh, no.” 

She sounded really upset, and instantly Terence felt bad. 

“Do you . . . Do you still want it?” asked Fairy Mo. 

“I . . .” Tinker Bell was speechless. Terence watched her scrutinize the flower, turning it upside down and examining every inch. He could tell that for whatever reason, she really cared about it. 

“We’ll take it,” Terence decided. 

Tink looked up at him brightly, all traces of anger gone. “Really?” she asked. 

Terence couldn’t help but smile. Tink’s happiness was contagious. “Sure, why not? Maybe it could use a little fixing.” 

Instantly the flower’s color began to return, and a small golden glow cast around the edges again. Terence was astonished. What was _with_ this thing? Why did it glow and go out and then glow again, back and forth? Was it some sort of trick? 

Fairy Mo all the while watched them with heightened interest, the way they bickered, and made up, all within the span of minutes. The flower was glowing. He made up his mind. 

“Tinker Bell, Terence,” he said. “I’m about to do something I’ve never done before.” 

Terence and Tinker Bell exchanged an excited look. 

“And if anybody asks, you’ll tell them you paid me several lost things I see you’ve brought along in that satchel of yours.” 

Tink’s eyes widened. “You don’t mean-” 

“I do,” said Fairy Mo. “You’re free to take the flower, and I want nothing for it.” 

Suspicion hit Terence like a sack of sprinting thistles. “You’re just . . . giving it to us?” he asked Fairy Mo skeptically. “But why?” 

“Terence,” said Tink through her teeth. “Take the favor and stop asking questions.” 

“But Fairy Mo,” insisted Terence. “Surely you want something for it?” 

“Terence.” Tink’s tone was firm, falsely calm. “Can I talk to you for a second?” 

She pulled him far enough away so that Fairy Mo couldn’t hear. 

“What are you _doing?”_ she scolded, furrowing her brows. 

“Tink, I’m sorry, but I don’t like the idea of him giving it to us for free. Doesn’t that seem a little suspicious?” 

“He’s being _nice_. I’m probably one of the only fairies that flies all the way out here to see him, and besides. His shop is full of trinkets. What’s he going to do with an old flower? Us, on the other hand . . .” Excitement lit up her face. “We can fix it. For whatever reason, now that we’re around, it’s glowing, and . . .” Her face fell again. “Oh, no. Poor Fairy Mo . . . That’s it! That’s why he wants to give us the flower.” 

Terence was lost. “Why?” 

“Because it doesn’t glow around him anymore,” said Tink, gesturing with her arms to accentuate her enthusiasm. “He was probably so excited to see it glow that he wanted us to have it so it would glow again.” 

“But why does it glow around us?” asked Terence. “That’s what I still don’t understand.” 

“I don’t know, either,” said Tink, looking to the ground with a small smile on her face. Then she looked back up to him. “But don’t you wanna find out?” 

Terence couldn’t resist that face. He had apprehensions about the flower, but he was willing to put them on hold if it made Tink happy. “Okay, fine.” 

Tink leaped with happiness, and flew to him. “Yes!” 

She wrapped her arms around his shoulders and pulled him into a hug, spinning him in circles as they fluttered in the air. “Thank you, thank you!” 

Terence laughed, holding onto her waist as they hugged before he set her back down. Then a trace of light hit his eyes. He turned back toward Fairy Mo and the flower, most surprised to see the glow back to where it was before, but even brighter this time. Now the flower was sparkling, little traces of pixie dust hovering over its petals. Stunned, he let go of Tinker Bell. 

“Terence,” she said, flying back to the flower. “Look . . .” 

Fairy Mo was laughing heartily. “Look at the glow of this thing!” he exclaimed merrily. “If I didn’t want to give it to you before, I certainly do now.” 

“Oh thank you, Fairy Mo, you’re the best,” said Tinker Bell. 

She took the glowing water lily off the shop counter and held it out to Terence. “Wanna hold it? It’s warm.” 

Terence reached forward hesitantly, gently gripping the bottom of the flower. Instantly a pleasant warmth spread through his fingertips. She was right. 

“That glow will light even the darkest pirate cave,” said Fairy Mo. “You can fashion it into a flashlight, a lamp, whatever you want. Just use caution. It may go out on you when you least expect it.” 

“Not to worry, Fairy Mo,” said Tink determinedly. “Terence and I are gonna fix it right up.” 

Fairy Mo chuckled at that. “Alright then, Tinker Bell. And Terence, it was a pleasure.” 

Terence smiled back at him. He really was a sweet, jolly little sparrow man. 

“Have a safe trip home!” He bid them goodbye, and after Tinker Bell said her goodbyes they were off. Terence held the warm, sparkling water lily, and it glowed all the way home.


	2. 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tink shows her friends the flower

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's kinda slow, but rn I'm just setting up the stage. Hang in there

“Are you guys ready to see what I found today?” asked an excited Tinker Bell to her group of friends. 

Fawn, Iridessa, Silvermist, Rosetta, and Vidia all gathered around the tinker, nodding enthusiastically. 

“Where’s Terence?” Iridessa asked. 

“He had to go back to work,” said Tink. “Which is too bad for him. He’s gonna really miss out on this flower’s radiant beauty when it glows again.” 

“Again?” asked Vidia. 

“A flower . . .” said Fawn, curiosity blooming on her face. “What kind of flower did you find?”

“A magic one,” said Tink proudly. 

“But which _kind?”_ pressed Rosetta. 

“Here, I’ll show you.” Tinker Bell smiled softly to herself at her friend’s enthusiasm, and flew over to her dresser where the flower sat patiently waiting for her. Right now, it was a white-ish grey, and its glow had once again disappeared. She sighed in disappointment, hoping it would have started glowing again by now. But there was still a chance. With that optimism in mind she picked it up and turned around as she placed the flower behind her back. 

“Are you ready, guys?” 

“Get on with it already!” said Vidia. 

“Ooh, I can’t wait to see,” gushed Silvermist. 

Not a moment later, Tinker Bell whipped the grey-ish flower around from her back, holding it up proudly and displaying it to all her friends. 

Not a word was spoken. 

Instead, silence lingered in her wake, and Tinker Bell felt a wave of dejection wash over her as she looked across her friends and found only confusion instead of delight written on their faces. 

“Uh . . .” said Iridessa, drawn out. “What is it we’re supposed to be looking at?” 

“Sugarplum,” said Rosetta, hesitantly, “I’m not so sure that’s a flower.” 

Fawn cast her a look. “Wow, Tink,” she said, sounding like she was trying to bring up the mood, “it’s- it’s really something.” 

Tink huffed as her posture deflated. She felt her wings go down in shame. Her friends weren’t impressed. 

“It’s . . . It must be broken,” she said quietly, unable to look up at her friends who undoubtedly felt sorry for her. “It was working before.” 

“What was it doing?” asked Silvermist gently, flying forward to Tinker Bell. 

“Didn’t you say it was glowin?” asked Rosetta. 

“Yeah, it was glowing, really brightly.” 

Instead of responding, everybody just cocked an eyebrow. 

“It was!” Tinker Bell insisted, feeling her temper flare. “It was earlier . . .” 

“It’s okay, Tink, I believe you,” said Fawn. Tink felt a warmth in her heart. Fawn always had her back. 

“Sunflower,” said Rosetta, flying forward to examine the flower. “I don’t know what kind of flower this is. It’s peculiar . . . I’ve never seen the likes of it in all my years gardening-”

“It’s a water lily,” said Tink, armed and ready to defend her flower. 

Rosetta paused. “Oh. Of course it is, honey. But . . .” She sighed. “Real flowers just don’t look like this. This looks like it’s been cursed with somethin’ . . . somethin’ sinister.” 

Tink clammed up. That was exactly what Terence had said. 

“If I may, Tink,” began Vidia, approaching her, extending her arms to wordlessly ask for the flower. Tink handed it to her. 

Vidia held the flower up to her face, closely inspecting it. She flipped it on its hind side, examined all its petals, even the stem. “It’s unique, that’s for sure,” she said. “Where’d you even find it?” 

“Fairy Mo’s pawn shop.” 

Rosetta, Silvermist, and Iridessa gasped, while Vidia and Fawn on the other hand didn’t look all that surprised. 

“Tink, everybody knows that shop’s rumored to have cursed items,” said Iridessa, sounding like a scolding mother. 

Tink rolled her eyes. 

“She’s right, Tinker Bell, this thing could be dangerous,” said Rosetta, once again sounding exactly like Terence. 

Tinker Bell furrowed her eyebrows. 

“Well,” interjected Sil, “it _could_ be. We don’t know that it actually is. To me, the thing seems harmless.” 

Tink’s eyebrows lifted back up. 

“Yeah, I’m sure it isn’t that bad,” said Fawn, ever the supportive friend. “It actually looks kinda cool.” 

“Didn’t you say it glowed?” asked Vidia, handing the flower back to her. “Why isn’t it glowing now?” 

Tink’s expression fell again. “I wish I knew, Vidia.” 

“Dess, you’re the light fairy,” said Silvermist. “What do _you_ think we need to do to get it to light up?” 

“Maybe there’s some secret spell you have to recite,” said Iridessa. 

Tink chuckled at her friend. “Nice theory, Dess, but there’s no spell. Fairy Mo would’ve told me. Although . . . He didn't want to tell us which type of magic it's powered with." 

She paused, suddenly thinking of something. Fairy Mo certainly didn’t seem too keen on telling her which kind of magic the flower operated on. Who was to say there weren't more things about it he kept hidden? For all she knew, maybe there _was_ a magic spell. 

“That’s a red flag, Tinker Bell,” said Vidia. “Never trust a virtual stranger trying to sell you something that's enchanted.” 

“He didn’t even sell it to us,” said Tinker Bell, giggling in memory of the happiness she felt when Fairy Mo offered it to them for free. “He _gave_ it to us.” 

“What?” exclaimed Rosetta. “He _gave_ it to you?” 

“For free?” exclaimed Fawn. 

“That’s another bad sign,” said Vidia. “That means he wanted to be rid of it. Tink, if you knew what you were doing, you’d get rid of it, too.” 

“But, Vidia,” protested Tink, “it really did glow. You should’ve _seen_ it . . . It was beautiful.” 

Tink sat back on her bed, cradling the flower to her chest, as she remembered how brightly it had glown for her and Terence. She recalled how dazzling and enchanting it had been then. 

“Y’know,” said Tink, looking up at her friends who flew closer to her. “Terence wasn’t on board with buying it at first, either. I tried to get him to listen, but he kept insisting it was cursed with dark magic-” 

“Which it probably is,” interrupted Iridessa. Tink shot her a glare. 

“Anyway, what was weird was, he kind of just switched on me last minute. At first he kept insisting and insisting we shouldn’t get it, giving me all the reasons in the world not to buy it, but then he just . . . gave in.” Tink trailed off, a soft smile falling over her face as she remembered how happy she'd felt when Terence had finally let up and said they could take the flower home. 

“Just like that.” 

Unbeknownst to Tink, the flower in her hand had begun to slowly, ever so slowly, regain its color. Several of her friends’ eyes were trained on it, and Tink thought she might’ve heard a gasp coming from one of them, but she was so consumed in her thoughts about Terence she paid it no mind. 

“Isn’t he wonderful?” asked Tink to the others, wearing that same dreamy smile that she always wore when she talked about Terence. “Sometimes I feel like he just really understands me better than-” 

“Uh, Tink?” 

“Tink!” 

Tink blinked back to reality. “Huh?” 

Vidia pointed with a shaking finger to the flower. “Look.” 

Tink looked down in her lap, and was most surprised to find that its golden glow had returned, bright as ever. Faint traces of pixie dust coated the petals, and a beaming glow came from the center of the water lily, reaching up to the roof. 

The flower now was a beautiful white-pink, and its petals glowed a magnificent gold. 

All the fairies stared silently, wide-eyed and open-mouthed at the water lily while Tink smiled so hard her face hurt. 

“I can’t believe it,” she breathed. “It’s working. It’s actually working!” 

“Tinker Bell . . .” said Rosetta quietly beside her. “This might be the most gorgeous flower I’ve ever seen.” 

The glow seemed to emit some sort of calm over the group, as everyone felt relaxed and content sitting around Tinker Bell in her little tea kettle home, eyes never once straying from the flower and its hypnotizing glow. 

The spell was broken once Vidia looked up at Tinker Bell. 

“Tink . . .” she said, though softer than her usual snippy tone. “What . . . _is_ this thing? It’s so . . . so . . .” 

“So wonderful?” Tinker Bell smiled softly at Vidia, and Vidia looked more calm and at peace than Tink had seen her in a long time. 

“I can’t stop staring at it,” Silvermist said, face squished in her hand as she leaned down towards the flower. 

“Me neither,” said Iridessa. 

“So Fairy Mo just . . . gave this to you? How could he let go of something like this?” asked Fawn. 

“That’s what I’m still trying to figure out,” said Tink. “It makes me wonder if . . . I hate to say it, but . . . if the flower didn’t glow for him. Maybe that’s why he gave it to us. He seemed really surprised when it started to glow, after all. Maybe he gave it to us because he was so excited to finally see it light up again.” 

“There has to be _some_ reason why it glows,” said Silvermist. “It can’t just glow for nothing.” 

“But why would it glow for me and not for Fairy Mo?” asked Tink. “It seems kinda unfair.” 

“Maybe it only glows for certain talents,” suggested Fawn. 

“But we’re all different talents, and it glowed for all of us,” Rosetta pointed out. 

“It’s just so . . . mysterious,” said Iridessa animatedly. “I wanna figure out what it is.” 

“Me too,” said Tink, eager that someone else was starting to enjoy the mystery the way she was. “Fairy Mo purposefully didn’t tell us what kind of magic it was enchanted with. I think he wants us to figure it out for ourselves.” 

“This is where I’ll put down my two grains of pixie dust, and say that it seems awfully suspicious he didn’t tell you right off the bat,” said Vidia, crossing her arms. 

“That doesn’t mean it’s bad,” argued Tinker Bell, slightly cross Vidia was being so negative about this and that her friends for the third time had sounded exactly like Terence. “It just means we have to do a little more work to get what we want.” 

“What I wanna know is why it took so long to glow,” said Iridessa. “Light bends at your direct command, and there is no delay. The flower didn’t light as soon as we wanted it to, so we can rule out our own force of will.” 

Tinker Bell sighed. 

“Just enjoy it, Sunshine,” said Rosetta. “It’s glowin’ right now.” 

“Who knows for how long for?” protested Tink, and sure enough, the flower’s glow immediately began to dim. 

“Oh, no,” said Rosetta. 

“That was . . . short,” said Silvermist. 

“But what got it to light up?” said Iridessa. “I really wanna know.” 

“I think I’m gonna hit the library,” said Tink. “I’m gonna see if I can find anything on magical, glowing flowers.” 

Vidia chuckled. “Then you’re probably gonna be looking for a while.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading, and if you have any opinions or feedback I'm all ears. Plus I don't rly like writing to an empty void. See ya on the next one!  
> -A


	3. 3

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terence's friends tease him about his not-so-secret crush on Tinker Bell. Clank and Bobble are up to their usual shenanigans.  
> *I've since gone back in and added in the real names of the dust keeper fairies since someone was kind enough to remind me of them*
> 
> But, Drew and Midnight are my ocs

“So today I went to this old antique shop north of Needlepoint Meadow . . .” 

Terrence animatedly told the story of their magic flower to his friends back at the dust depot.

“Did you say hi to Tinker Bell for us, Terence?” teased his friend Stone. 

Terence felt his face heat up. He hadn’t even said he was with her. 

“Did she give you a little kiss?” taunted another friend, Flint. That got the other sparrowmen and fairies doubled over in laughter. 

Terence crossed his arms and cast him the meanest glare he could muster.

“Would be about time,” drawled another fairy, Drew. She had seafoam green eyes and thick, long brown hair. To any regular sparrowman she’d appear decently attractive, but Terence only had eyes for one fairy. 

“Stop it,” Terence hissed, embarrassed. 

“Oh, leave him alone, Drew,” scolded yet another fairy, Midnight. Terence looked at her gratefully. 

“He’s just too afraid to ask her to the Summer Ball, aren’t you, Terence?” 

This caused a chorus of “ooh”s and giggles from the fairies. Terence’s face flattened. So much for Midnight sticking up for him. 

Although, he  _ had _ been hearing a lot about the Summer Ball lately, and it was only a month away. He wondered what it would feel like to ask Tinker Bell to go with him, if she would even go with him. But he couldn’t. He couldn’t ruin their friendship like that. What they had was too special. He couldn’t spoil it by asking her to some silly dance. 

Terence shook his head quickly. “Don’t be ridiculous, Midnight,” he said, playing it cool. “You know I don’t go to that stuff.” 

“I’d be willing to bet my supply of dust for the whole week that she’d say yes.” 

“I’m not going to ask her,” said Terence firmly. “Cause then she’d think there’s something there when there’s not, and I’m not putting our friendship at risk for that.” 

“Who are you really trying to convince?” Stone teased. “Us, or you?” 

That got more chuckles. 

“I’m not going,” Terence said, tone clipped, “and that’s final.” 

“Suit yourself,” Drew said lightly. “But I’m sure Tinker Bell would be  _ most _ interested in a certain, single sparrowman friend of mine, who’s looking for a date . . . ” 

Terence froze. 

“I’m sure he would be most  _ delighted _ to take Tinker Bell. She is quite lovely, isn’t she?” 

“You wouldn’t,” Terence said hotly. 

“What was that?” Drew’s face perked up, and her eyes sparkled with mischief. “Am I hearing that there’s  _ another _ fairy who’s interested?” 

“That isn’t- I’m not-”

“Uh huh,” Drew said smugly, placing her hands on her hips. “I just think that a fair, young maiden like Tinker Bell deserves a good date to the Summer Ball. Though I would be happy to send him on his way, if, of course, you asked her instead.” 

Terence was stunned. Some friends he had. Drew had basically just lured him into a trap of asking his best friend to the ball and potentially destroying their friendship. 

“Come on, Terence, we all know you want to do it,” said Flint, smirking. 

“Guys, this is a misunderstanding,” he began, but he was talked over at once. 

“Nonsense,” scoffed Stone. 

“I don’t believe it for a second,” said Midnight. She pulled her short, blue-black hair up into a ponytail and then flew away to begin her inventory on the pixie dust stocks. 

“Stop torturing yourself and just ask her,” said Drew with a bright grin. 

“But how?” 

“What do you mean, ‘how’? She already likes you . . . Just be yourself.” 

“Yeah, as a friend,” Terence scoffed, not believing what he was hearing. “I can’t risk everything we have just for this ball.” 

Drew and Stone exchanged a look. 

“You really don’t see it,” Drew said softly, more to herself than Terence. 

“See what?” His friends were beginning to make him cross. First they had forced him into asking Tinker Bell to the ball, something he was not emotionally equipped to do at all, and now they sounded like they were keeping something from him. 

Drew looked downcast. “Oh, honey. It’s nothing . . . Just, never mind.” 

“No, what is it?” Terence demanded. 

“Don’t worry about it,” said Drew. “Let’s just get back to work. Fairy Gary will be here any minute.” 

“No, that isn’t fair,” Terence argued. “You brought it up, so spill.” 

Drew sighed. “Terence, you’re overthinking this. I just don’t think Tinker Bell is going to reject you like you think she is.” 

His face lifted in hope. “What makes you say that?” 

Drew opened her mouth to respond, but before she could say anything, a booming, deep voice cut in. 

“Hello, everyone!” 

Fairy Gary had returned. Everyone’s attention turned to him at once. 

“Fly with you, Fairy Gary,” greeted another dust keeper, Bolt. Fairy Gary nodded in response to him. 

“Terence,” he said, making a beeline straight for the blonde sparrow man. “We missed ya this mornin. Where were ya off to this time instead of leading mornin deliveries?” 

“Oh, I’m sorry, Fairy Gary,” Terence apologized. He hoped he wouldn’t be in too much trouble for skipping deliveries. But when Tinker Bell had knocked on his door this morning, sounding that excited, he’d just had to go with her. 

“It’s just, I-” 

“He was with  _ Tinker Bell _ again,” chimed in Stone. Terence cast him a look. 

Instantly, Fairy Gary’s face brightened. “Oh, I see.” 

Deep, red blush coated Terence’s cheeks. “It’s not what you think, I was just-”

Fairy Gary waved him off with a chuckle. “No need to explain. Just, Terence, lad, don’t skip morning doses again. I don’t wanna have ta get mean on ya. We need everyone on the team.” 

Terence bowed his head, looking down to the floor. “It won’t happen again, Fairy Gary.” 

“Alright, then. Now, for the fun. What were you and Tinker Bell doing this time?” 

A chorus of chuckles erupted in his wake. 

“Nothing important,” Terence glowered. He was sick of their shenanigans, and he no longer felt like telling them the story of the flower. He wanted to keep it private now. 

“He said they went to an antique shop,” said Drew. 

Terence sighed heavily. Lately, all it seemed his friends wanted to do was talk about Tinker Bell. And he couldn’t for the life of him figure out why. 

“And that was it,” said Terence, with an air of finality. “We just checked it out for a bit and then left.” 

“Fairy Mo’s antique shop?” asked Fairy Gary, sounding intrigued. “I haven’t been there in years. He’s quite a whimsical little chap, isn’t he?” 

“I don’t think fairies go there a lot,” said Terence. “He was pretty happy to see us. But Tink goes on a regular basis.” 

“Well of course she does,” chuckled Fairy Gary. “Probably half her inventions come from there.” 

“Actually, most of her inventions come from lost things,” said Terence. “Stuff that rolls up on the coast.” 

“You would know, wouldn’t you,” Flint taunted. Terence rolled his eyes at him. 

“Now, Flint,” scolded Fairy Gary. “I’m going to go find Midnight, and check on the inventory. I’ll be back in a while.” With that, he flew away. 

“Now,” said Drew, not wasting a moment. She grinned mischievously. “Back to the ball. How are you planning on asking Tinker Bell?”

“I honestly don’t know. You kinda put me on the spot here.” 

“Well, we all know you wouldn’t have been able to do it on your own.” 

“How am I supposed to just casually ask her?” said Terrence. “What if she says no?” 

“Again, I don’t think that’s going to be a problem, but worry all you want.” 

“What would I even wear? I don’t have nice clothes for this sort of thing.” 

“Lucky for you, I know an excellent tailor fairy who can design you an outfit.” 

Drew really had spun him a web here. 

“Also, about asking her.” Drew wrote something down on a leaf, and then looked back up at him. She wore a more serious expression than she had earlier. 

“Don’t overthink, don’t try too hard to plan for the perfect moment, just do it.” 

Terence hardly thought he was capable. It seemed whenever things were looking up for him with Tink, something else would come along and ruin it. Like when they were working on the fall scepter together. With each morning that Terence had flown by and brought her breakfast, his feelings for her had grown stronger. The whole month they worked together, he battled with himself on how to confess his feelings, if he should confess them at all. 

Because Tinker Bell honestly looked so cute when she woke up in the morning. Her cherubish cheeks would be all rosy and her blonde hair would be down, draped around her shoulders instead of pulled up in that bun. Not that her hair looked bad when it was up, but Terence just thought it looked . . . different. A good different. 

And that smile she’d wear when he gave her pumpernickel muffins, her favorite. Terence loved it. 

He’d decided that on the day the scepter was finished, right after Tink placed the moonstone on top, he would tell her. And whatever happened, would happen. 

But that moment never came. 

He remembered another time, last year when they went to the mainland together. He’d been going to plan a picnic for her at sunset, with all her favorite food. He would have told her over dinner when they had a moment alone together, which was rare to find in the bustling town of Pixie Hollow. It would have been perfect. 

But that moment never came, either. 

After Tinker Bell had gotten captured by that Clumsy, he’d lost his courage to ask her. She’d just been through a huge ordeal, Terence reasoned, and he hadn’t wanted to add to her stress. But deep down, with a spout of shame, he realized that the real reason was that he simply was not ready. 

“But Drew,” he said, “I don’t know if I’m ready.” 

“Oh, Terence,” she chided. “No one’s ever really ready.” 

“So you’re saying . . . I should just ask her. No buildup, no waiting, just, rip the band aid right off.” 

“Exactly.” 

Terence was really going to do this, wasn’t he. “Alright, fine. I’ll do it.”

Drew made a fistbump with her tiny hand and smiled. “Yes!” she exclaimed. 

“But, Drew, if anything happens, if she freaks out . . . I’m holding you personally responsible.” 

She responded with a smirk. “Fine by me.” 

____ 

It was a busy day in Tinker’s Nook, a place Terence had grown to become quite familiar with as his friendship with Tinker Bell had blossomed over the years. He flew over groups of fairies hovering over various workspaces with various inventions. Luckily for him, Tinker Bell’s house was high up so he wouldn’t get too much in the way of the other tinkers busy at work. He headed toward the left. But he hadn’t watched where he was going close enough, for moments later he knocked into a rather large fairy flying at full speed. 

The impact sent him tumbling backwards into a tree. He hit his head rather nastily, and he winced from the pain. 

“Mother Dove,” he cursed. 

“Oh, Terence, was that you?” called a voice that he immediately recognized as Clank. 

Terence refrained from giving him a piece of his mind. Clank was nice, but he could be a bit clueless at times. Lots of times. Like right now, when Terence was trying to lick his wounds and Clank just wouldn’t leave him alone. 

“Didn’t see ya there,” Clank continued, flying up to him with a worried look on his face. “Are you alright?”

Normally, Terence wouldn’t mind indulging him for a couple minutes, but he was on a time limit, here. He only had an hour to spend with Tinker Bell before he had to report back to work. 

“I’m fine, Clank, it’s okay,” he said as kindly as he could. “But I should really get going, I’m-”

“Wanna see our boat?” Clank asked, a pleading look on his face. 

“Your what?” Terence rubbed his head again. He was surely going to get a headache. 

“Our boat. The one we’re remaking, with Tink.” 

Oh,  _ that  _ one. The one Tink mentioned on the way to the shop. 

Terence wasn’t sure how to respond. 

“C’mon, Terence, we’re really proud of it so far,” Clank insisted, flying closer to him. “I’m sure you’d love to see it.” 

He wasn’t really giving him any room to say no. 

“Uh, alright. Sure, I’ll see it.” 

What had he just gotten himself into? 

Clank’s face lit up like a firefly. “Great. Well, follow me, then!” 

He flew down quickly, Terence hardly being able to keep up. They flew over to where Bobble was tinkering away on the boat, which only looked half finished. 

“Behold, the Pixie Dust Express!” 

Clank, picking up on Terence’s lack of enthusiasm, began babbling once again. 

“I know it doesn’t look like much right now, but we’ve still got a ways to go. We got loads of work to do!” 

“Clanky, could ya hand me that screwdriver over there?” Bobble asked in his thick Scottish accent as he pulled himself out from underneath the boat on a little, rolling wooden seat he’d built for himself. 

“Sure thing, Bobble!”

Clank picked up the handy little contraption and passed it over to his friend, who thanked him and pulled himself under the elevated boat once again. 

The first thing Terence noticed was that a pair of skis sat directly to the right of the boat, and he remembered Tinker Bell distinctly noting that the boat would not have skis this time. 

“It’s . . . great so far,” said Terence, trying to sound supportive. “But, what about the skis? Tink told me you weren’t doing those anymore.” 

Bobble instantly appeared out from underneath the boat once again, and Clank’s lips pursed as he and Bobble exchanged a look. “Clank . . .” Bobble began, “I thought you were supposed to tell her.” 

Based on Clank’s troubled expression, there must have been some sort of miscommunication because he definitely had not told Tink. 

“I thought you were!” he exclaimed. 

“I said you were!” argued Bobble before disappearing under the boat once again. 

“Guys, it’s okay,” said Terence, wanting to simmer them down. “I’m sure she’ll be thrilled to hear you’ve figured out a way to use the skis again. That was her favourite part about it.” 

“Oh, no, Terence,” said Clank. “Tink specifically said it was the skis that caused the boat to collapse.” 

“Then why are you using them again?” 

“Because they’re awesome!” Bobble and Clank exclaimed together, followed by a fit of laughter. 

“I got an idea,” said Bobble, coming out from the boat again and standing up. “Terence, how about you tell her? You’re her best friend. She’d take it better from you.” 

Terence raised a brow. He knew Bobble and Clank could be kind of ditsy, but now they wanted him to be their messenger? 

“I don’t know, guys,” he said, having a feeling he was treading on slippery slopes. “You’re her work partners. Maybe if you come up with a good enough reason to use the skis, or a solution to the problem they caused last time, she’d be on board.” 

“But that’s where we need her,” Clank protested. 

“She’s the one that needs to come up with a solution. She’s the expert!” said Bobble. 

“She is one good tinker . . . Alright. I’ll tell you what. I’ll tell her about your decision to use the skis, and I’ll say that you two want to  _ collaborate _ with her and come up with an idea together of how to fix them. Instead of her doing all the work.” 

“Why, that’s a great idea,” said Bobble, smiling at Terence. “Fact, I think she’s home now if you want to-” 

“Bye, guys!” Terence was already gone, soaring through the air.

At long last he landed in front of Tinker Bell’s house, bracing himself.

_ You don’t have to do it today, you’re a nervous wreck, clearly it would fall apart before it even began _ . 

Terence sighed, inwardly cursing Drew, and knocked on her door. 

Tinker Bell answered, and when she swung open the door Terence was most surprised to see her in her bathrobe. Her hair was loose around her shoulders, slightly damp. And the robe barely covered her legs, not that he was looking. 

“Hey . . . Tink,” he said awkwardly, hoping he wasn’t blushing. 

Tink jumped back in surprise, drawing her robe tighter around her chest. 

“Terence!” she exclaimed, though she didn’t look unhappy to see him. Just caught off guard. That made two of them. 

“I just got out of a bath,” she said sheepishly. “Give me five minutes?” 

“Yeah, of course,” he said, mouth dry. “Take . . . take all the time you need, I’m sorry to interrupt.” 

“No, you’re fine!” Tink insisted. “Just wait right there.” She shut the door, leaving Terence to his racing thoughts. 

_ I barged in, right in the middle of her bath. There’s no way I can ask her now, I’d sound like such a creep _ . 

Terence put his head in his hands, uselessly fending off his headache, and sighed heavily. He was so embarrassed. 

All too soon Tink opened her door again, fully dressed, and beckoned him inside. 

“Sorry again, Tink,” he said, unable to look her straight in the eye after having seen her like that. “I didn’t mean to invade your privacy.” 

“Stop apologizing, Terence, really, it’s fine,” said Tink. “If I had a problem I would’ve said so. Really.” 

Terence looked at her. She may have had a temper short as a bumblebee’s wing, but underneath that hard exterior was actually a very sweet soul. Sometimes he thought she was too kind for her own good. If that were Rosetta or god forbid Vidia he’d walked in on they would’ve thrown a fit. 

“I only have a little time, I’ve got to get back to work in an hour,” said Terence. “But I just wanted to drop by and see you, and see how the flower’s doing.” 

_ Nice excuse _ , his inner monologue tormented. 

Tink’s face brightened. “Oh, the flower! You should’ve seen it earlier when it glowed for the girls. It was magnificent.” 

She flew over to the flower perched nicely on her dresser. 

“But it went out as soon as it began.” Her wings drooped down. 

“Hey,” said Terence, flying over to her. He resisted the urge to put an arm around her after what happened earlier, so he hoped his words could be comforting enough. “We’ll figure it out. You’ve got the best tinkering mind out of anyone I know. If anyone can fix that flower, it’s you.” 

Tink looked at him, a small smile blooming on her face. “You think so?” He thought he saw a twinkle in her eye. He couldn’t help but smile back. 

“Of course I do. That hammer, Tink, when you were born . . . You should’ve seen it. It was brighter than any other talent I’ve ever seen.” 

Tink’s cheeks went pink. Terence had to have been imagining it. Or, it must have just been because she felt flattered by the compliment. Yeah, that was it. Fairies blushed when they received compliments. It was a normal thing. 

Suddenly, the room was cast with a faint yellow glow. It only had one possible source: the flower. Both Tink and Terence turned their heads slowly toward the water lily, and sure enough it had begun to glow. The faint yellow quickly transformed into a rich, deep, golden amber. 

Tinker Bell gasped, hands covering her mouth. Her gaze flitted between Terence and the flower.

“Terence . . .” Tink flew closer to the flower. Terence followed. 

“Look.” 

Terence was looking. But in that moment, Tinker Bell was far more beautiful to him than the flower. Her face had a beautiful amber glow, and her sky blue eyes sparkled like the stars. Terence stood adjacent to her, peering at her from the other side of the flower. 

“Wow . . .” he said softly. 

The flower then emitted a small burst of pixie dust that exploded like a little firework, showering down onto the petals. 

“Woah . . .” They both said at once, then laughed at their synchronicity, and this flower’s strange ability to completely arrest their attention no matter the circumstances. Terence truly wanted to know how this peculiar little flower could glow so radiantly. He was confident with Tink’s help they would find out. 

Something in him stirred, and he felt a tugging feeling in his chest. He swallowed. 

This was it, now he could ask her. 

_ Just be cool, it’s no big deal, it’s just friends going to a dance together, hurry now, before you lose your confidence _ . . . 

“Hey, uh, Tink?” 

Tink looked lazily up at him. “Mhm?” 

“There’s, um, something I wanted to ask you.” 

Her eyebrows lifted in interest. She stood up straighter. 

“What is it?” 

“Would you want to-”

“Miss Bell? Are you home?”

“Bobble, we haven’t-” 

“Shh!” 

A jumbled, disorderly Clank and Bobble came stumbling into her home, panting. 

Tink startled, looking away from Terence to the arrival of her two best tinker friends who were chattering and bickering under their breath. To Terence’s dismay, the flower began dimming down at once. And in another moment, the pixie dust was gone. 

Once again, he put his head in his hands. He resented Clank and Bobble for their perfectly awful timing. 

“What’s going on, guys?” Tink asked her friends. 

“We’ve stumbled into a problem with the boat, Miss Bell, and we need your help,” said Bobble. 

“No no no, no,” Clank objected, shaking his head rapidly. “Everything’s just fine.” 

Tink’s brows furrowed, and she crossed her arms. “Guys?” 

“Well, it’s with the . . .” Bobble began, then turned to look at Terence. 

“Terence, have you told her yet?” 

“Bobble,” Clank protested. 

“Told me what?” 

“About the skis?” 

Clank face planted. 

Tink’s face flashed in surprise. “I thought we weren’t doing the skis this time.” 

“See that’s the thing, we’ve-” 

“We’ve come up with an idea that would-” 

“Clanky, let me tell it-” 

“Well, it was my idea!” Clank argued. 

“But I can say it better,” Bobble fired back. 

“You didn’t-”

“Guys!” Tinker Bell put her hands on her hips. “What is going on?” 

“See, Miss Bell, we’ve-” Bobble began,

“We’ve come up with a way to work the skis into the boat,” Clank finished proudly. 

“Really?” Tink looked excited. “Let’s go, then!” 

She turned to Terence. “I’m sorry, Terence, but if we wanna have this boat ready by autumn, then we need to get cracking. Can we talk about this later?” She smiled kindly at him.

He felt resigned. “Yeah, of course, no problem. Good luck with the boat. I’ll catch you later.” 

“Okay, bye!” Tink, Clank, and Bobble flew away, leaving Terence alone with his thoughts. He glanced back toward the flower one more time before flying away. It was grey and lifeless once again. 


	4. 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Here's a whole bunch of fluff and wholesome fairy fun for ya

Tinker Bell slept soundly into the day. The sun’s light was shining through her windows, casting shadows across her walls, but she barely stirred. In fact, as the hours ticked by her sleep seemed to get deeper. A rather physically demanding game of fairy tag had kept her up late and knocked her out cold. But she began to wake when she heard knocking and voices at her door. 

“Do you think she’s still asleep?” 

“Don’t be crazy, it’s almost noon. Of course not.” 

“It is Tink we’re talking about-” 

“Hello? Tink? You up?” 

It wasn’t enough to completely wake her; she shifted in her bed, but stayed asleep. 

Her door swung open, and in flew Rosetta, Silvermist, Iridessa, and Fawn with baskets of food, blankets, and towels. 

“Mornin, sunshine!” said Rosetta loudly as she flew to the sleeping fairy. 

Tink stirred some more. “Huh?” she yawned, stretching her arms and legs. Her eyes fluttered open, and at the sight of her friends she perked up. 

“Oh, hey.” 

Morning visits from her friends weren’t unheard of, so she wasn’t all that surprised to see them. But she was just so worn out from the game of tag that she felt all groggy, and unprepared to face company. 

“What-”  _ Yawn _ \- “time is it?” 

“Almost noon, sugar,” said Rosetta cheerfully. “And we got a whole afternoon planned for us.” 

“We’re gonna picnic at Clearwater Falls!” Fawn exclaimed. 

Tink had never been to Clearwater Falls, but she loved a good picnic. “Oh, wow, okay. Yeah, I’d love to. Just, let me get dressed.” 

“Of course,” said Iridessa. The fairies turned the other way and walked closer to her kitchen away from her bed. Tink stood up the little barricade she’d fashioned that sheltered her from their view. 

Once she had changed, put her hair up, brushed her teeth, and put some shoes on, she did a once-over of herself in the mirror and decided she was ready to go. 

“Alright, is there anything else we need?” she asked her friends. 

“Nope, we got it all,” said Iridessa. 

“Okay. Well, we do need to make one stop along the way.” 

“Oh, we know,” said Silvermist. 

“To the pixie dust tree!” said Fawn. 

So the group left and headed for the tree. Tink only had a few moments’ peace before her friends started teasing her about a certain dust keeper sparrowman. 

“So,” said Silvermist, giving knowing eyes to Fawn, who chuckled, “you think Terence is gonna be there?” 

Smirks bloomed on the other fairies’ faces. Tink, oblivious, nodded her head. 

“Yeah, of course, he’s a dust keeper. Why wouldn’t he- Wait.” The look on Silvermist’s face gave something away. “Why’d you say it like that?”

“No reason,” said Silvermist innocently. “I’m only saying, if a guy like Terence looked at me the way he looks at you, we wouldn’t still be friends. Is all I’m saying.” 

Tinker Bell was confused. First of all, Terence didn’t look at her any sort of way. They were just friends. Her friends seemed to have trouble understanding that. Secondly, it sounded to her like Silvermist had a crush on him, based on what she was saying. 

Jealousy flared in her chest. Searing, white-hot jealousy that hit her out of nowhere, and she had no defenses against its attack. Tink felt her cheeks flaming up, and she summoned all the willpower she could to calm herself down that instant. What was going on with her? The last thing she needed was her friends jumping to conclusions over  _ this _ . 

“Wait. You like him?” She hoped she sounded calm. She could process this onset of unexpected emotions later. Right now, she needed to get to the bottom of this. 

“What?” Silvermist looked thoroughly confused. “No, I don’t.”

“But you said-” 

“I didn’t mean it like that,” Silvermist laughed. But she let it go, leaving Tinker Bell even more confused. If she didn’t like him, then what was she saying? 

“Leave her be, Sil,” scolded Rosetta. “And leave the relationship advice to me.” 

“Wait,  _ relationship _ advice?” asked Tinker Bell. “Rosetta, I’m not-”

“Of course you’re not, sugarplum. When you’re good and ready, I’ll be here to talk.” 

Tink tugged on her bangs, agitated that they were going in circles with her. 

“Plus, I have the most experience.” Rosetta closed her eyes, smiled, and crossed her arms. 

“No, you’ve got it all wrong,” Tink protested. 

“But, Tink, you’ve got to see, he’s-” 

“Let’s leave it alone, for now,” said Fawn, and Tink felt most grateful for her interruption. Besides, they were almost to the pixie dust tree. 

Up ahead the tree buzzed with life. Dust keeper fairies flew all around, fairies were stopping in for their daily dose, and of course the beautiful waterfall of dust cascaded down from the top of the tree. It was one of Tinker Bell’s favorite parts of pixie hollow, for several reasons. One, she loved to look at the pixie dust falling from the tree; it mesmerized her, and it never got old. Two, she also liked to swing by on off times like right now to visit Terence. 

She had lots of memories at this tree, like when she’d stopped by after ruining all the preparations for spring, ready to get a double dose of dust and take off, never to return. But Terence had helped her back away from that cliff. After he’d told her about being “just a dust keeper guy,” she’d insisted that his talent, while not the most glamorous, was still extremely important to all of Pixie Hollow. This caused her to realize, on her own, that her talent was special, that  _ she _ was special. And from that day on they’d become close friends. 

Tinker Bell just so happened to have slept through the morning rush, so they came at a good time to get her dose of dust. 

“Hey, Bolt,” said Fawn as they flew up to greet the dust keepers. 

“Hey, guys,” he said as Stone flew down beside him. “You here for a dose?” 

“I am,” said Tinker Bell, walking forward. 

“Alright, come with us,” said Bolt. 

They led her around the back to where they did doses. 

“I was just wondering,” said Tinker Bell, “is Terence here right now?” 

Stone and Bolt exchanged a look. 

“Yeah, I think so,” Stone said, with a certain tone to his voice. Tinker Bell wasn’t sure she liked it. 

“Want me to fetch him?” 

Tink didn’t want to trouble him, but he  _ was _ offering. 

“Sure, if he isn't busy. If he is, just tell him I say-” 

“Hey, Tink!” Terence’s cheerful voice cut through their awkward conversation. Tink looked up excitedly at him. She couldn’t contain her smile. 

“Terence!” 

He flew down beside them. 

“It sure is something- seeing the losers of tag in a new light,” he teased. Tink whacked him on the shoulder with a glare. 

“Hey!” 

When Terence caught sight of his friends, he stood up straighter and cleared his throat. “So, you slept well last night?” 

“As a matter of fact, I did,” said Tink. “I actually just woke up. Think you could give me my dust?” 

“Well, I may be able to help with that.” He tossed her a wink. 

“We’ll let you handle this one, Terence,” said Stone. Bolt stifled a laugh. Terence turned away from Tink, casting them a glare. She wanted to ask why, but refrained. 

“Good seeing you, Tinker Bell,” said Bolt as he waved goodbye. Tink waved back to their sniggering, retreating forms. 

“What was that all about?” 

Terence shook his head in annoyance. “They’re always like that. I don’t know what their deal is.” 

Tink wasn’t completely sure he was telling the truth. She wondered if there was more to the story. But she decided to let it go for now. 

“Now, let’s see about that dust.” Terence walked behind the counter and pulled out a small, green sack of dust. Tinker Bell watched him open up the sack and get a pinch of dust. Dutifully, she approached him and bowed her head slightly. Terence sprinkled that little pinch of dust over her. Pixie dust was quite powerful. A little went a very long way. That was why Tink was surprised when Terence reached into the bag again and pulled out more. 

“What’s a little extra for my best friend?” 

Tink felt herself grinning. “For me?” 

Terence laughed. “Of course, m’lady. Here, turn around.” 

Tink did as she was told and smiled softly as Terence showered her with the extra dust. She gave her wings a flutter and spun around in a circle. Once she steadied herself back on the ground, she took a step closer to Terence. 

“Thanks.” 

“Any time,” he said with a smile. “You know you’re the only fairy I’d break the rules for.” 

His dazzling, teal, blue eyes shone with kindness. She was captured by them. Now, this was her friend, Terence, and she was used to his eyes, to everything about him. But right now, somehow, something seemed different. 

_ “If a guy like Terence looked at me the way he looks at you, we wouldn’t still be friends.”  _

Silvermist couldn’t have possibly-

“Terence?” A somewhat familiar voice cut through, and Tink snapped out of whatever trance she had been in. She turned towards the source of the voice, and saw a tall, thin fairy with tan skin and short, jet black hair flying toward them. Tink thought she could remember her name since she’d seen her around the dust depot every now and then, it had something to do with the time of day . . . Twilight? 

“Oh, hey, Midnight,” Terence greeted. 

Right. 

Instead of saying hi back, Midnight flew and landed next to Tink, casting her an unfriendly look before turning her gaze to Terence. 

“You’re late for deliveries. Again. Fairy Gary’s waiting on you.” 

“I’m sorry, I was just talking to Tink, I’ll be right there,” Terence said. 

“No, it’s okay, go,” said Tink, immediately swamped with guilt. She’d probably gotten Terence in trouble again. “We’ll catch up later. Plus, I’m about to-” She gasped. “The picnic! I’m going on a picnic with the girls to Clearwater Falls, and we’re- after we eat, we’re going to dip our feet in, and-” She stopped herself from tripping over her words any further, and took a deep breath. 

“After your deliveries, do you wanna meet us there?” 

Tink wasn’t sure if the girls would be pleased, since this was supposed to be their girl time, but she was sure with a little convincing they’d warm up to the idea. 

Midnight, appearing most impatient, began tugging on Terence’s arm. 

“C’mon, Terence, we gotta go-” 

“One second.” He pushed Midnight off him. “Tink, I’m not sure how long these deliveries are going to take, but . . . I’ll try my best.” 

“Okay,” Tink said, accepting that answer as the best she was going to get. “See ya later!” 

As Midnight and Terence took off, Tink thought she heard Midnight say, 

“For goodness sake, Terence, you’ve kept us all waiting long enough. You can talk to your girlfriend later, you’re at work right now-” 

Before Tink realized what she was doing, she followed the two fairies and called after them, “Excuse me,  _ what _ did you just call me?” 

Midnight stopped dead in her tracks. Terence slowly turned around, and tried to communicate with his eyes for her to be quiet. But Tink did not listen. 

“Did I just hear you call me his girlfriend?” 

Midnight turned around to face Tinker Bell. “Oh, so you heard me? Cute. Well, I was telling your boyfriend he shouldn’t be socializing so much at work when there are things to be done.” 

“Midnight!” Terence exclaimed. 

“He is  _ not _ my boyfriend,” Tink said hotly, feeling her cheeks start to darken. “He’s my best friend. But you wouldn’t know anything about friendship, would you? With the way I hear you talking to your coworkers.” 

Midnight furrowed her brows and pointed a finger at Tink. “Now, you listen here, you little-” 

“So you take the first two fairies you see that have some sort of bond, some sort of connection, that you seem to be sorely lacking with anyone and just assume that we’re dating?” exclaimed Tink.

“Tink, don’t,” warned Terence. 

“You don’t get to go around calling people boyfriend and girlfriend just cause they’re engaged in  _ one _ conversation-” 

“No connection with anybody?” scoffed Midnight. “We’ll see about that, you rude, little pixie.” Then she flew off. That left Terence and Tink once again, only instead of happiness an air of discomfort settled around them. 

“Tink, that was-”

“The meanest fairy I’ve seen since Vidia made me capture-”

“Unnecessary. You didn’t have to yell like that.” 

“Wait, are you serious? Did you not hear the way she was talking to us?” 

“I know it wasn’t very nice, but, Tink, she was just kidding, it wasn’t-” 

“She doesn’t get to talk to us that way!” Tink’s cheeks were on fire, she knew she needed to settle down, but she couldn’t, she just couldn’t . . . Her defenses had sprung straight up when Midnight had poked fun at her expense, calling her Terence’s  _ girlfriend  _ . . . Tinker Bell fumed silently. 

“Tink,” Terence said, more gently. He carefully reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder. She flinched, slightly, but did not back away. “It was just a joke. It’s okay.” 

Tink looked up at him. Instantly, her anger evaporated at the look on his face. In its place, she felt a calm wash over her, followed by guilt. She took a deep breath, released it, and broke eye contact with Terence. Now reflecting, she felt ashamed for acting out like that. It was unnecessary, and childish. 

“It was just a joke,” Terence repeated, and he sounded almost . . . disappointed? Why? Tink looked back up at him, surprised. But before she could say anything, Terence gave her a pat on the shoulder and flew away without another word. 

Feeling dejected, Tink flew back out to the main area of the pixie dust tree and rejoined her friends. 

“Tink, there you are! What took you so long?” asked Silvermist. 

“Did ya say hi to Terence for us?” asked Rosetta with a smirk. Tink had had about enough of this nonsense. 

“No, I didn’t, Rosetta,” she said, “because we just got my dose of pixie dust. That’s it.” 

Rosetta took a step backwards, putting up her hands. “Alright, Tink, you don’t have to get all defensive on me, I was just askin a question. What’s got ya all hot ‘n bothered?” 

“I am  _ not _ hot and bothered,” argued Tinker Bell, placing her hands on her hips. “Maybe I’m just sick of everybody asking me about Terence all the time when there’s  _ nothing _ there.” 

“Okay, okay, calm down,” said Iridessa, glancing at Fawn and then back at Tink. “We’ll stop, you know we aren’t . . . We’re just joking.” 

“Well, stop joking.” 

“Alright,” said Fawn in an attempt to placate her. She cast a worried look to the other girls that Tink didn’t like at all. “Come on, let’s just go to the picnic and have a good day.” 

“Oh, about that.” Tink stopped the other girls as they were about to fly away. “Guys, I, uh, sorta asked Terence . . .” She couldn’t continue. After the way she’d just snapped at them, she was in no position. 

“Asked him what?” said Silvermist. 

“If . . . he could meet us at the picnic later.” 

“Oh, sugar, that’s wonderful,” said Rosetta, their argument forgotten. “Of course he can come.” 

Tink felt a rush of relief. “Really?” 

Rosetta flew to her and wrapped an arm around her. “You know, you don’t have to get so defensive around me. We were only askin about him cause we know ya care about him.” 

“I know, I’m sorry, Ro,” said Tink. “It was just . . . this other fairy, Midnight, came by, and she was sorta . . . teasing us, and it made me angry.” 

“Oh, Midnight?” Silvermist asked, shaking her head. “Bad seed, that one. I do not like her.” 

“I’ve never met her, but that’s a pretty name,” commented Iridessa. 

“I know exactly who Midnight is,” Rosetta said darkly. “And let me tell you, that fairy can make Vidia look like a saint if she wants to. She has nothing nice to say, ever.” 

“She just . . . got to me. So I sorta exploded at her, and told her she didn’t know anything about friendship.” 

“You’re not really wrong,” said Silvermist. 

“But that’s why . . . that’s why I was all mad when I came back,” said Tink, shoulders deflating. Rosetta squeezed her a little tighter before letting go. 

“It’s in the past, dewdrop. Now, let’s go enjoy our picnic.” 

Together they flew out of the pixie dust tree to savor the beautiful, sunny, fun-filled day they had ahead of them. 

_____

The girls had just feasted on their delicious meal at Clearwater Falls, and they sat back on the blankets they’d set up, rubbing their full bellies and feeling content. The sounds of the babbling brook were like a melody to Tinker Bell’s ears. It was peaceful, and for the first time in her life she felt like she could understand being a water fairy. 

She also figured out where Clearwater Falls had gotten its name, for she could see completely into the bottom of the stream. She saw the rocks, and fish, and plants that resided below the surface. The water was teeming with life, clear as glass. 

Trees surrounded them on both sides like a tunnel, with little shards of light peeking through. It was like a little paradise. Tink loved it. 

She also took time to admire the little, fairy-size waterfalls that gushed throughout the stream. The rushing and roaring of the water sang to her ears. No wonder Silvermist was so calm all the time. This would quell her temper, too. 

“How have I never been here before?” Tink asked quietly, enamored by it all. 

“Isn’t it a dream?” Silvermist asked beside her. “It’s my favorite place to come and unwind.” 

“I can see why.” 

“It’s hidden, so not a lot of fairies come.” 

“I like it that way.” 

“It took me a while to work up the courage to show you guys. For a long time, it was sort of . . . my private place.” 

Tink felt wracked with guilt for telling Terence. “I’m sorry, Sil, I shouldn’t have asked-” 

“No, Tink, it’s alright.” Sil shook her head and chuckled. “He’s one person. I’m not bothered by it. Plus, he’s your best friend. It’s not like you told the whole dust depot.” 

Tink smiled at her. Silvermist was a really understanding fairy. 

“Now, who wants to go for a dip?” Sil asked, standing up. 

“Everyone, let it be known, the  _ water _ fairy wants to go in the water,” Fawn deadpanned. 

“I’ll come!” said Iridessa, standing up. The two slipped their shoes off and ran down towards the stream. 

“I’ll get there,” said Fawn. “I’m still digesting.” 

“I’m going in,” said Tink, kicking off her shoes. “Wanna come, Rosetta?” 

“I think I’ll stay up here with Fawn,” said Rosetta. “I don’t really do water unless it’s my bath-” 

“Oh, come on,” chided Tink, reaching her hand out for Rosetta to take. “You can worry about your hair later. Don’t you wanna have  _ fun?” _

“And I’m not allowed to have fun with my hair dry and my dress intact?” 

Tink sighed, taking her hand away. It was no use. “Suit yourself.” With an excited whoop, she took off after her friends. 

Rosetta sighed contentedly, leaning back into the blanket and folding her arms behind her head. “Kids these days.” 

Tinker Bell ran down towards the water, but stopped when she got to the rocks. The water rushed quietly over the mossy boulders, and it looked quite slippery. From back at the blanket it looked lovely and inviting but up close it was rather intimidating. 

“C’mon, Tink!” called Silvermist, who was already knee-deep in the water. “Don’t be shy.” 

“Yeah, the water’s fine!” said Iridessa. 

Tink took a hesitant step forward into the water, and flinched at the cold. 

“No one said it was going to be warm,” laughed Silvermist. 

“Dess, you said it was fine!” protested Tink. Dess shrugged. “Fine, cold . . .” 

Tink reasoned the only way to get rid of the cold was to keep going, so she took another cautious step in. 

“Well, you’re never gonna get used to it like that,” Silvermist chided, coming back to Tink. “Give me your hand.” 

“Wait, what?” 

“Give me your hand.” 

Tink shook her head and stubbornly walked around the shallow, slippery rock. 

“Tink . . .” 

Suddenly, she heard a gush of wind behind her. Next thing she knew, she was being scooped off the ground into somebody’s arms. All too quickly, she was being dropped down into the water, and her reflexes weren’t quick enough to kick in and stop her fall. She hit the water with a smack, and instantly her body was drenched in cold. She rose her head above the surface, gasping, pushing her wet bangs out of her face. 

It was Terence. 

“Terence!” she said, astonished. He had made it! And he had just  _ thrown _ her into the water. “You’re gonna pay for that.” 

Iridessa, Silvermist, and Terence all laughed heartily. 

“Well, then, come and get me!” Terence jumped into the water, and hit the surface with a loud splash. He rose above the water and smirked at Tink. She felt her mouth open in shock. 

He locked eyes with her as he slowly backed away, upstream towards the falls. 

When she turned toward Silvermist and Iridessa, they were grinning at each other. 

“What?” Tink asked, with a burst of laughter in spite of herself. 

“You heard him,” said Dess, smiling. “Go get him.” 

Tinker Bell set off after Terence, floating through the calm, clear water. Now that she’d gotten used to the temperature, the water felt smooth and refreshing on her skin. She floated on her back for a moment, letting the serenity of the stream wash over her. She could stay like this forever.

“Oh, Tink? Where are you?” called Terence’s daunting voice that drew her back to reality. She had revenge to seek. She began drifting through the water again, and she spotted a bush up ahead with a wing popping out from behind. Aha! 

“Terence,” she called. “Come on out wherever you are.” She got closer to the bush, ready to execute her attack, and then . . . 

_ Splash!  _

Terence had gotten her,  _ again _ . Drenched, Tinker Bell squinted her eyes shut, frozen, as she spat water out of her mouth. 

“Oh, you are so dead!” She splashed him back, and Terence only laughed as he circled around the bush and floated further away. 

“Come back here!” 

Tink swam after him, and splashed him again. Terence splashed her back, and soon the two of them were engaged in a full-fledged splash war. Tink would duck her head and close her eyes bracing herself for impact as she splashed water onto Terence, and Terence would splash her back heavily, laughing all the while. 

Tink eventually couldn’t take it anymore. She lifted her hands to block the onset of water from her opponent, and tried to catch her breath. “Truce!” she called, pushing hair out of her face. “Truce.” 

“Alright,” Terence chuckled, ending his assault and putting his hands back down in the water. He got closer to Tink. “That was a good-”  _ Splash. _ “-game.” 

Tink was drenched again. 

“Oh, you  _ didn’t!  _ C’mere!” She splashed him again, and again, until Terence put his hands up and shook his head. “Okay, okay.” 

Their laughter echoed, bounced off the trees and rocks, then finally died down. Tink couldn’t even be mad at him. This was the most fun she’d had in weeks. She looked up at him through her wet, flat bangs, a small smile forming on her face. 

Terence returned her smile, then spoke. “Follow me. There’s something I wanna show you.” 

The two headed upstream, sifting through the calm, glassy water. Tink marveled at the wildlife swimming beneath the surface that tickled her toes and circled her legs. Her wings would surely be wet for hours after this, and she didn’t even care. 

The rushing of the waterfalls started to get louder, and it was getting harder to swim against the stream. She struggled against the current, and was beginning to fall behind. It seemed Terence was stronger. 

“Wait!” she called, as loudly as she could over the sound of the waterfalls up ahead. 

Terence turned around, noticing she was further back. “Hurry up, Tink!” he teased. 

“I’m trying.” She fought against the current some more. She wasn’t the best swimmer. She was a tinker talent, not a water talent. She didn’t understand how Terence came to be such a good swimmer. 

She continued to struggle, and to her dismay Terrence started coming back towards her. She was not a damsel in distress; she did not need rescuing! But Terence all the same came back to her and reached his hand out to her. 

Tink looked at him, and felt a rush through her chest. She’d never felt this way before. What was going on? First the jealousy with Silvermist, now this . . . She shook the feeling as best as she could. They were just best friends swimming to the waterfalls together. That was it. 

With that in mind she accepted his hand and allowed him to lead her towards the waterfalls. She looked behind her. Silvermist and Dessa were nowhere in sight. She looked back towards Terence. He seemed to be swimming them along with virtually no effort, Tink thought as she kicked her legs uselessly behind her. His hand was cold and firm in hers. 

As they drew nearer to the waterfalls they got louder, and the rushing of the water filled Tink’s ears. 

“Terence, this is so pretty,” she said. 

“You should see it during spring,” he said. “The flower petals fall down around the waterfalls, all different colors, and it’s . . . beautiful.” 

Tink could only imagine. “I’m sure it is. We’ll have to come back, then.” 

Terence turned around to look at her. “Yeah. We can do that.” 

They continued swimming. As the current got stronger, Tink’s hand started slipping. Terence caught her with his other arm, and dragged her forward so they were swimming side by side. She turned to look at him. He was missing his signature acorn cap, and his usual fluffy hair was damp and flattened to his face. 

“See that?” Terence asked, pointing up ahead to the right. Tink looked. There was a large waterfall, with several rocks and smaller falls surrounding it. It was gorgeous. 

“There’s a rock on the other side where we can stand and listen to the water. Wanna check it out?” 

“Sure.” 

The pair set off for the waterfall, and despite the cold of the water Tink began to feel warm with the presence of Terence’s hand in hers. It wasn’t a feeling she was all too familiar with, but she rather enjoyed it. 

When they reached the first rock, Tink clung onto it tightly as Terence let go of her hand. He pushed himself up, and climbed onto the rock. He reached his hand out for Tink to help her up. 

She took his hand, and with surprising strength he pulled her up onto the rock. “When’d you get so strong?” she couldn’t help asking. 

Terence shrugged it off. “Guess it comes with my good looks.” 

Tink laughed and shook her head at him. “In your dreams.” 

Terence feigned hurt. “And the truth comes out! Is that really how you feel about me, Tinker Bell?” 

Tink bit her lip and tried her best to keep from blushing. “C’mon, let’s keep going,” she said, dodging the question. 

Terence let it go, and they climbed up some more rocks, each more slippery than the last. They made their way behind the waterfall, and Tink loved the way the water roared in her ears. The sunlight didn’t reach back here, so she shivered and wrapped her arms around herself as she copied Terence’s movements up the rocks. The climb got steeper as they neared the big rock, and when they were a little over halfway through she felt herself slipping. She fell down, scraping her knees across the rock. 

“Tink?” He turned around. “You alright?” 

She nodded, wincing, as she slowly stood back up. Her knees were sore from the impact, but she would live. 

“We’re almost there,” he encouraged, and they resumed their climb. At last, after much huffing and panting from the out-of-shape Tink, they reached the top of the rock. The waterfall was loud as ever, and they were sprayed with gentle, little spurts of mist. Droplets of water fell from above, and they had to step aside to avoid them. 

All in all, Tink really liked the scenery. 

“Terence, this is . . . This is awesome.” 

“It’s a hop and a skip to get up here, but once you make it . . . It’s worth it.” 

Tink smiled at him. “I couldn’t have done it without you. I sure am glad you splashed me back there.” 

“Just wait til I show you how we get down,” said Terence. “You’re gonna love it.” 

“I can’t wait.” Tink began walking towards the waterfall, wanting to reach her hand out and touch it. The water was tempting her, inviting her in. She closed her eyes when the gentle bursts of mist hit her, then opened her eyes again, getting closer . . . 

“Tink, wait-”

The rushing of the water grew louder. She wasn’t listening to Terence anymore. She stepped closer. Her hand was almost to the waterfall. 

Suddenly, she slipped on a pebble that was almost at the very edge of the cliff. She wobbled, throwing her arms out to balance herself, but to no avail. Gravity won. It drove her forward, straight to the waterfall-

A strong pair of arms encircled her waist, pulling her back to safety. Tink’s bare feet skidded on the slippery surface, and she clung to her rescuer tightly. She slowly lifted her head up, and found Terence’s face mere inches from hers. She felt his breath on her face. Suddenly feeling faint, she loosened her hold on his shoulders and released all the air she’d been holding in. Her heart thudded heavily, racing in her chest. She found herself frozen in time. Then she remembered to breathe. 

She slipped again, almost falling down, but Terence’s arms tightened around her waist, holding her close. 

“Woah, easy,” he said softly. “I gotcha.” 

Tink’s mouth wasn’t working. She couldn’t form words. She felt Terence’s arms around her, their closeness . . . She’d never been this close to him before. 

“You’ve gotta be careful, Tink,” he said, loosening his grip but not letting her go. “I know it looks harmless, but . . . water can be really dangerous.” 

All she could do was nod. Suddenly, she felt suffocated. Like this was too much. She pushed herself out of Terence’s hold, and he didn’t fight it. He let go, backing away. He looked . . . a little hurt. 

So Tink tried her best to amend the situation. “Thanks, Terence.” Her voice sounded weak, so she cleared her throat and tried again. “I’ll, um, I’ll try to remember that. I’m sorry.” 

Terence smiled softly at her. “You don’t have to apologize, Tink, you know how many times I slipped and fell into water when I first learned how to swim?” 

Tink smiled back, already feeling better. 

“We may not be able to touch the water, but there’s still something I wanna show you. C’mon.” Terence led her over to the other side of the rock, out of range of the falling water drops, where Tink could see a few other gushing waterfalls below. It was a splendid sight. 

“Oh, wow,” she said. 

Terence sat down at the edge of the cliff, far enough away to be out of range of the waterfall’s cunning breeze but close enough to feel the playful mist. He patted down the space next to him. Tinker Bell came and sat next to him, and the two of them had a comfortable silence sitting and listening to the water together. Eventually Tink started to grow tired and rested her head on Terence’s shoulder, yawning. Terence, pleasantly surprised by the gesture after the way she’d acted earlier, scooted closer to her to allow her to be more comfortable. Tink decided she quite liked where she was at and didn’t move for a while. 

Eventually the two of them stood back up, stretching and deciding it was time to head back. 

“But, Terence,” said Tinker Bell, “how are we-” 

“Remember? Didn’t I say I had a way?” Terence smirked. “You trust me, don’t you?” 

Tink cocked an eyebrow. “Yeah . . .” 

Terence jumped up onto a neighbouring rock and leaped as high as he could with his wet wings to grab a leaf. “Catch,” he called to Tink, tossing down the leaf. 

Tink caught and examined the leaf. It was surprisingly thick, and large enough to fit them both. “Terence, what are we-” 

“Just trust me.” He walked over to the right side of the rock, where Tink could see many waterfalls trickling down. He wasn’t suggesting-

“Put it right here.” He pointed to the edge of the cliff. Oh, no. 

Nervousness began to creep in as Tink placed the leaf down. “You’re not saying-” 

“Oh, yeah.” Terence chuckled. “You’re gonna wanna hang on tight.” 

Tinker Bell shakily got into the leaf, clutching the sides even though they hadn’t taken off yet. 

“Alright, Tink, I’m gonna give us a little push, on three. One . . .” 

Tink braced the sides of the leaf boat, shivering with fear and anticipation. 

“Two . . .”

She made the mistake of looking down. She gulped. 

“Three!” 

Terence gave a great push to the boat, and immediately hopped in the back as they raced off. They soared over the cliff, and Tink yelped in fear as they landed back down and caught the drift of one of the waterfalls. 

“Hold on tight!” Terence yelled as they picked up speed and plummeted down the waterfall. The inertia was enough to send them gliding at lightning speed, water spraying their faces. Terence laughed in glee; Tink screamed. 

They quickly made their way down, waterfall after waterfall, Tink clinging onto the sides of the leaf for dear life. She was breathless and trembling by the time they hit the smooth, still water at the bottom. 

Terence was laughing and whooping. 

“That was fun!” 

“That was . . .crazy!” she exclaimed, turning around in the leaf to face her friend. “We could’ve-” 

“What? Gotten wet?” Terence smirked at her. 

Tink scoffed. To her dismay, he was right. It  _ had _ been fun, even if it was scary. 

“Admit it. You loved it.” 

She bit her lip. “Alright, fine.” 

They glided slowly back downstream, and soon enough they got back to where they were before and found all the girls in a splash fight, even Rosetta. 

“Hey, girls!” Tink called, grinning and waving from the leaf boat. 

“Tink!” Fawn exclaimed. Their splashing came to a stop as they waved back to their friends. 

“Where did you two go?” Iridessa asked curiously. 

“We went and saw the waterfalls,” said Tink. “It was incredible.” 

Fawn and Rosetta looked at each other, smiling. “Aww, that’s adorable,” said Rosetta. 

Tink commanded herself to keep from blushing. Thankfully Terence stayed silent, so she chose to ignore Rosetta’s comment as well. 

“What have you guys been up to?” she asked instead. 

“You’re lookin at it,” said Rosetta. 

“Silvermist was using her powers to win the fight,” complained Fawn. Silvermist grinned smugly. 

“Do you guys wanna lay out on the blanket and dry our wings?” asked Tinker Bell. “I don’t know about you, but I’m freezing.” 

Her friends expressed agreement, so they made their way out of the water, ready to bask in the sun and enjoy the rest of their day. They lay out on the blankets side by side face down, letting their wings soak in the sun. 

While they lay peacefully, Tink’s mind kept racing. She couldn’t quiet it down. She thought about Terence, how he’d rescued her just in time. She thought about how his hands had felt holding her waist protectively, how she hadn’t entirely hated it.  _ So why had she pushed him away? _

They were best friends, that was why. Besides, Terence only saw her as a friend and Tink didn’t want to jeopardize that with any feelings she might have had. So she laid her head down on the soft blanket, and willed her thoughts away. With no luck, though. They stuck to her like glue. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Feel free to check out my tumblr I'm at robinbuckllly. And thanks as always for reading, see ya on the next one!   
> -A


	5. 5

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Silvermist gives Terence some much-needed advice

“You did _what?”_

Silvermist dropped the dewdrop she’d just collected and turned to Terence, mouth agape. 

“I, uh . . .” Terence scratched his head nervously, “I told Drew I’d ask Tink to the ball.” 

Silvermist gasped and flew over to him. “Really? Oh, that’s wonderful.” 

“Wonderful? I’m not sure about wonderful . . .” 

“Why not? I’ve been rooting for you two for so long and now you’ve finally taken the first step, Terence, I’m so proud of you!” 

“Rooting for us?” Terence’s heart started beating louder. “Why?” 

Silvermist had that innocent yet mischievous look on her face. “Well, everybody thinks you two would make a fantastic couple.” 

Terence’s cheeks coated in a deep crimson. “But she’s my best friend,” he protested weakly. “We can’t date.” 

“And why not?” Silvermist put her hand on her hips. 

“Because she- I can’t ruin what we already have. I can’t let her think I’ve only hung around her because I . . . want something out of her. Which isn’t true at all. But I don’t want- I mean- What if she doesn’t like me back?” Terence slapped a hand over his mouth. 

Silvermist practically glowed. “You know, you’re really bad at hiding your feelings. You’re lucky Tink’s oblivious with this kind of stuff. Or maybe you’re not. Cause this seems to be torturing you.” 

“Please don’t tell her, Sil.” He wished more than anything that he’d just kept his mouth shut. 

“My lips are sealed,” said Silvermist. “Although, I don’t think your friendship’s in as much danger as you think it is . . .” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Did you ever stop and think that maybe, just maybe, she likes you back?” 

Terence had not. Sure, sometimes Tink displayed gestures of friendly affection that could have been mistaken for romantic to the unknowing eye, but he never thought much about them because the two of them were just that close. It was just Tink being Tink.

But then he remembered the other day at the waterfalls, when she had almost slipped and fallen and he’d pulled her back to safety away from the cliff. How close they’d been while he held her, all those foreign feelings pulsing through his veins. How she’d looked at him . . . He could tell she’d felt scared, but there was something else too. 

And then she’d pushed him away, before he’d had time to figure it out. He didn’t know what she had to be so afraid of. He’d never hurt her or do anything to make her upset, at least not on purpose. Maybe she just reacted because he’d been in her personal space. 

“Sil, I don’t think she does,” he said glumly, sitting down on a lily pad. “The other day at the creek, something happened.” 

Silvermist instantly perked up. She flew over and sat next to him, kicking her feet gently around in the water. 

“When we were playing at the waterfalls, she almost slipped and fell into the water. I caught her, and she was okay, but she just . . . pushed me away. She’s never done that before. Granted, I’ve never had to catch her like that before, either, but . . .” 

Her face fell again. 

“Hmm . . . she was probably scared, Terence. Poor thing’s never had feelings for someone before, she has no idea how to deal with any of it.” 

“I haven’t felt anything like this before, either,” said Terence. He felt like he could trust Silvermist. She may have been one of Tink’s best friends, but they’d also known each other long before Tink even existed. She was a good friend, and an even better listener. 

Then he realized what she’d just said. 

“Wait, are you saying Tink has feelings for me-” 

Silvermist gave him a look. “Think about it,” she said. “Tink has no frame of reference. To her, for all she knows these feelings could be something bad, something scary that she needs to push away in order to feel comfortable again.” 

“But the last thing I want is to make her uncomfortable-” 

“It’s not your fault, Terence. There’s nothing you or I could do to change how she feels about that. If it’s a new feeling Tink’s not used to experiencing, she’s going to try and fight it. And think about it. Our tiny, little bodies can’t contain more than one emotion at a time; they consume us entirely. If Tink’s being consumed by all this, just imagine how she must be feeling right now.” 

“You’re talking like you’re sure she likes me,” said Terence slowly, unable to process what he’s hearing. 

“I’m not really the expert on this sorta thing,” said Silvermist, “but I think if you just tell her how you feel, you may be pleasantly surprised.” 

“That’s the thing,” said Terence, unwilling to register what the water fairy had just said. There was no way Tink liked him like that. “I have to ask her to the ball because Drew threatened to set her up with somebody else if I didn’t.” 

Silvermist gasped. “Why, the conniving little schemer!” 

“Now I’m stuck in this situation where I have to ask her to the dance without making our friendship weird.” 

“I don’t know what you’re so worried about. She’ll definitely say yes.” 

Terence cocked an eyebrow at her. 

“Terence.” Silvermist shook her head. “You think too little of yourself. You’re a kind, dare I say handsome young sparrowman. _Any_ fairy would be lucky to have you. And let me tell you, fairies like Tinker Bell don’t come around very often. She’s special.” 

“I _know_ she’s special . . . Our friendship’s special, too. That’s why I can’t risk it all over something like this.” 

Silvermist sighed. “If you’re really not ready to tell Tinker Bell how you feel, I get it. So then just ask her to the dance as friends. No harm will come of that. You’ll be safe, your friendship will be safe, and Drew won’t get to set her up with someone else. Everybody wins.” 

Something about that didn’t feel quite right to Terence. It almost felt like a let down. Like as soon as Silvermist had voiced that fear, it hadn’t sounded quite as rational to his ears as it had his mind. 

“I don’t know if I like that, either . . .” Terence slumped over, putting his chin in his hand. He stared down into the glassy water, and his glum face peered back up at him.

“Oh?” Silvermist’s eyebrows lifted. “Why’s that?” 

“Because then we’d just be . . . we’d just be doing the same thing we’ve been doing for so long. Sometimes I’ll get a sign from her, that maybe she likes me, too, and then it’s just gone. Like I imagined it. What if I _am?”_

“Terence.” Silvermist placed a hand on his shoulder. “I hate seeing you like this . . .” 

“I’m afraid if I ask her to the ball, the truth will come out . . . And I can’t let that happen.” 

“Is it just because you’re not ready, or because you don’t want to be with her?” 

“What?” Terence exclaimed. “No, I _do_ want to be with her, but-”

“So.” Silvermist just smiled softly. 

Terence gaped at her. Stunned at what she’d just gotten him to admit. 

“What was that thing we were just saying, about how fairies can’t contain more than one emotion at a time in their small bodies . . .” 

“Silvermist-” 

“If you like her, then just _tell_ her. She won’t think lowly of you. I think that’s just your brain going into overdrive because like you said you’ve never had feelings like this before and you’re worried about how she’ll react. On the small chance she doesn’t like you back, which would go against everything we’ve been seeing for a long time, then your friendship will still survive. You two have been through worse.” 

“But it would be different,” Terence argued. “And I don’t want things to change from where they are now.” 

“But what if it’s a good change?” Silvermist asked calmly. 

Terence looked at her. 

“You _could_ just tell her about the ball, ask her to go as friends, and it will be fine,” said Silvermist. 

Terence nodded. 

_“Or_ you could take a chance and tell her how you really feel, and you could possibly be going to the ball together as a new couple.” 

That got him smiling. He didn’t hate that idea at all. 

“See? That’s what you want to do. Isn’t it?” 

“I-” 

“Isn’t it?” 

Terence felt his cheeks darken once again. She had gotten him. 

“Yes.”

“I knew it!” Silvermist created a splash of water out in excitement. 

“But it’s not that simple, Silvermist. What if she . . . what if she thinks the only reason I’ve been her friend this whole time is because I _liked_ her?” 

“She’s not gonna think that, Terence, for several reasons. One, Tink doesn’t jump to assumptions that quickly.” 

“She has before.” 

“Two, who was the one that helped her realize how important her talent is?” 

“She figured it out on her own,” he defended. “I didn’t really say much.” 

“Who was the one that went after her after she broke the scepter?” 

“Me?” 

“And who’s the one that’s been by her side time and time again through mishap after mishap? Not because he feels like he has to, or _wants something_ , but just out of the goodness of his heart?” 

Terence sighed. “Me.” 

“If you think this is one-sided,” said Silvermist, her warm, brown eyes glistening, “I’m here to tell you it’s not. She talks about you all the time.” 

“Really?” Terence perked up. “I didn’t know that . . .” 

“She’s always going on and on about how good of a friend you are, how lucky she is to have you. And she really is. You’re lucky. She’s lucky. You’re both so _lucky.”_ Silvermist looked down at the water, played with her long, black hair, then looked back up at her friend. “It’s about time you realized it.” 

“How am I gonna tell her?” Terence asked quietly. “I don’t wanna upset her, I-” 

Silvermist smiled at him, shaking her head. “You won’t.” 

“I’m so nervous,” said Terence, placing a hand over his heart. “I don’t know if I can do this. I don’t wanna scare her-” 

“Sure you can,” encouraged Silvermist. “Just think of it like any other conversation.” 

“Okay. So I’m just gonna tell her I like her, and ask her if she wants to be my date to the summer ball, and . . .” 

“See? Simple.” Silvermist put her hands in her lap. 

“Simple? I’m shaking like a leaf, and I haven’t even asked her yet.” Terence tried in vain to slow his racing heart. 

“It’s okay to be nervous,” said Silvermist. “Just remember what I told you. She rants and raves about you, to the point where it’s starting to get annoying for the rest of us.” 

That put a smile on his face. “She does?” 

“Yes, she does.” 

“What does she say?” 

“All kinds of things. How you’re the best friend she’s ever had, how she can always count on you, and how you’re-” 

“See, that’s it! That’s the problem. We’re best friends. I can’t take that away from her . . . What if that’s all she wants?” 

Silvermist sighed. “Now we’re talking in circles. Look at it this way. You can’t honestly look me in the eye and tell me that you’d be fine being ‘just friends’ with a girl like Tink for the rest of your life.” 

His ears started heating up. He said nothing. 

“Exactly.” Silvermist folded her arms matter-of-factly. 

“I’m scared, Silvermist,” he admitted.

“As you should be,” said Silvermist. “I’m not going to sit here and tell you it’s going to go exactly the way you want. It may not. But what I am going to say is that your fear is natural, and it’s all a part of being a man.” 

“What do you mean?” 

“Do you think being a man is all about steel armor and having no feelings and crushing all your emotions to the ground?” 

Terence wasn’t sure how to answer. “No . . .” 

“Then listen to your fear. It’s _okay_ . I’d be worried if you _weren’t_ scared. Then you wouldn’t be a real man.” 

“What’s your point?” 

“My point is, being brave isn’t about having no fear. It’s about acting in spite of it. Are you ready to be brave, Terence?” 

He smiled. “I think I am.” 

____

“So, I’m a little annoyed,” said Tinker Bell, who sat perched atop a tree branch next to her tea kettle home in Tinker’s Nook. Vidia sat next to her, and normally Vidia wouldn’t be caught within fifteen feet of Tinker’s Nook but the other day Tink had promised her some of her favorite treats from the bakery if she came by. So here she was. 

“Why?” asked Vidia, popping a scone in her mouth. 

“Because my flower hasn’t lit up _once_ since the time I had you all over.” Tink had been trying tirelessly to get it to glow, but it seemed her tinker brain was no match for whatever strange magic this flower was enchanted with. 

“I’ve tried everything,” said Tink. “I’ve talked to it, left it alone, sprinkled pixie dust on it . . . It’s just so frustrating!” She crossed her arms and glowered. 

“Maybe if you chilled out,” Vidia began hesitantly, which earned her a nasty glare from the tinker, “it would light up. Since that’s such an unheard of thing.” 

Tink said nothing. 

“Did you ever find anything in the library?” Vidia tried. 

“Of course I didn’t.” 

“Have you let Terence take a look at it?” 

“Yes . . .” Tink scoffed, shaking her head. “He doesn’t even like it all that much. He only got it to make me happy.” She tucked a strand of hair that had fallen loose behind her ear. 

“Maybe it’ll grow on him,” said Vidia. 

“Doubt it.” 

“What’re you being so negative for? If you’re really all that upset about it, just take it back to Fairy Mo.” 

“But you don’t understand, it’s _our_ flower,” argued Tinker Bell, uncrossing her arms. “We got it together, it started glowing for us. Right when we got there, it started glowing.” 

“Like, as soon as you found it?” Vidia clarified. 

“Well . . .” Tink thought back to the day at the shop. “Terence didn’t seem as interested in it as I was. But then he said we could take it and try some magic on it, and it started to glow.” 

“As soon as he said that?” 

“Yeah. It didn’t last, though. It started going out when Terence and I were arguing about whether to get it. He thought it was cursed with dark magic, and I insisted it was fine. Then he said I was so desperate to have something to fix that I’d pick up the first useless object that came along. That made me angry like you wouldn’t believe. It took every ounce of my self control not to explode on him right there. After he said that, the flower went out again.” 

“It did?” Vidia raised an eyebrow, and she had an unreadable expression on her face. It made Tink feel like Vidia knew something she didn’t. 

“Did it light up again while you guys were there, or did it stay out?” 

“Yeah, and I still don’t know what happened . . . This is what I was telling you guys about when I brought it home. Terence changed his mind, just like that.” She snapped her fingers for emphasis. Vidia’s eyes widened. 

“He was just suddenly okay with buying it. I was looking at it, trying to get it to light up again, then he said that we would take it. That’s when it started to glow again.” 

Vidia gasped. 

“What?” 

She shook her head. “Nothing, I just . . . Wow.” 

_“What?”_

“Fairy Mo didn’t tell you what kind of magic, right?” 

“Right . . .” Tink raised an eyebrow. “All he said was it was the most powerful magic in all of Neverland.” 

The corners of Vidia’s mouth turned up in a smirk. “The most powerful, huh?” 

“Yes . . . why are you looking at me like that, Vidia?” 

The look dissipated and was replaced with confusion. “Looking at you like what?” 

“Don’t do that, you know what I’m talking about!” Tink felt her frustration begin to grow. 

“I really don’t . . .”

Tink sighed. “Nevermind. I just wish he told us . . . Maybe if we figured it out and got it to glow again, Terence would learn to see it the way I do.” 

“Maybe it would teach him to see a couple things the way we all do,” muttered Vidia. 

“What are you talking about now?” Tink wasn’t in the mood for her games. 

“Nothing,” Vidia defended. “I just . . . Can I speak to you candidly?” 

At least she had the manners to ask. “Of course.” Tink turned to face her. 

“I think it’s about time he grew a pair of wings and asked you out.” 

Tink felt her mouth fall open in shock. Her eyes widened. Her heart hammered in her chest. She began to blush something fierce. 

“It’s not like that. We’re just friends.” 

“Uh huh,” Vidia said smugly. “‘Just friends’ don’t give each other the do-me eyes on a daily basis.” 

Tink’s cheeks darkened considerably. “We do not!” 

Vidia cocked an eyebrow. “You don’t?” she asked flatly. 

“No.” Tink shook her head back and forth. “We also don’t do all the other things you guys say we do. Like, stare at each other too long, or hug longer than usual, or-” 

“You’re not very good at lying to yourself, Tink,” said Vidia. “It’s written all over your face. But you don’t have to try to convince me of anything, really, I’m not here to judge.” 

A very confused Tink raised her brows. 

“I’ve been around the pixie dust tree a few times, sweetie. I notice things.” 

Flustered, Tink tried to compose herself. “But, he’s my best friend.” 

“And?” asked Vidia, unfazed. 

“I can’t!” exclaimed Tink, confused why Vidia didn’t seem to understand this. “I can’t just . . . ruin everything like that.” 

Vidia chuckled. “For a fairy who’s supposed to specialize in figuring things out, you’re pretty clueless.” 

“So first you try to convince me my best friend likes me, and now you’re insulting my intelligence?” 

“Not convincing,” Vidia corrected. “Just stating the obvious.” 

“Do you know what would happen if I asked him, and he doesn’t feel the same? Do you have any idea, Vidia?” 

“So you admit it.” 

Tink was speechless. 

“I-”

“It’s just something to think about,” Vidia said lightly, flipping her thick, black ponytail. 

It had Tink thinking, alright. It had her shocked that Vidia had figured her out so easily. And it had her re-examining and questioning her entire friendship with Terence. 

She thought back on all those times Terence was kind to her. If they were out of romantic affection rather than just friendship, then she felt like her world was being turned upside down. She must have had the complete wrong idea of friendship if there were any grain of truth to what Vidia was saying.

“Are you saying he was never my friend?” 

Vidia shook her head. “No, he’s always been your friend. But now . . .” 

“What?” 

“Just . . . Forget it.” 

“No, tell me!” 

“Tink . . .” Vidia sighed. “I’m trying to tell you that I don’t look at my friends the way Terence looks at you. It makes me think he wants something more.” 

She remembered what Silvermist had said. 

_“If a guy like Terence looked at me the way he looks at you, we wouldn’t still be friends.”_

“But I haven’t noticed anything,” said Tink, and that was the truth. Sure, sometimes her heart fluttered when Terence smiled at her or when those teal eyes seemed to sparkle a little extra. But those were her own reactions. They didn’t have anything to do with him. Did they? 

“Of course you haven’t,” said Vidia, putting a hand on her shoulder. Tink shook it off. 

“Don’t patronize me.” 

Vidia scoffed. “I’m only trying to help, Tinker Bell. I saw something there with you guys and wanted to be a pal and point it out to you. Though, if you’d rather ignore it, that’s fine by me. No wings off my back.” 

Vidia’s words stirred deep in her mind, going around in circles. About Terence liking her, looking at her a certain way, wanting to be more than friends . . . It had Tink second-guessing their relationship again. But then she remembered what Vidia had said. She’d said that Terence had always been her friend. That had to mean something, right? Vidia had said that Terence was always her friend, but now wanted something more. 

The idea had Tink’s stomach doing somersaults, though it wasn’t an unpleasant feeling. Just . . . an unfamiliar one. 

“Let’s say he is,” said Tink. “Where would we go from here?” 

“That’s for you guys to figure out,” said Vidia. “Though . . . a guy doesn’t always have to make the first move, you know.” 

“What are you saying?” Tink felt her heart start to race again. She was pretty sure she knew what Vidia was implying. 

“I’m saying, a guy like Terence is probably terrified to ask you. At least, right now when he has no idea you’re interested. So what you need to do, if you’ve decided this is what you want, is to start flirting with him. Not so much you embarrass yourself, but enough to show him that you like him.” 

Tink’s cheeks were colored a deep, rich scarlet. “I don’t know how to flirt,” she muttered, looking down to her feet. “What if I do it wrong?” 

“My go-to is dropping things and bending over to pick them up. Worked like a charm on my ex boyfriend,” said Vidia. “Although, I have a feeling that’s not really your style.” 

Tink sighed, putting her head in her hands. “This isn’t gonna work. I can’t change the way I act around him. If I try, he’ll know something’s wrong and then he’ll ask what’s going on. Then I’d have to tell him. I can’t, Vidia.” 

“Suit yourself.” Vidia shrugged. “Maybe just keep being yourself. That seems to be working pretty well so far.” 

“You’re starting to sound like my other friends.” 

“Am I?” Vidia feigned surprise. “It seems like you’re not ready yet, which is fine. But I’m here to tell you he does like you-” 

“How are you so sure? You said he didn’t say anything.” 

“Like I said, I didn’t need him to. I can just tell.” 

Her other friends seemed to be able to “just tell,” too. That outnumbered her, five to one. Maybe she really was clueless. She folded her arms around her chest insecurely. 

“Look, Tink, I’m not trying to stress you out,” said Vidia. “Just . . . think about it. That’s all.” And she took off. 

Tink didn’t know what to do with all this information. There was a chance Vidia wasn’t telling the truth, that she was just imagining it all. Tink wouldn’t put it past her to do that, considering how lonely the fairy was. Vidia had very few friends. It would make sense she’d want to live vicariously through the lives of others and stir up drama. 

But the other, smarter part of her thought harder. And refused to come to such a shallow conclusion. If there was even the chance Vidia had been serious, then Tink had mountains of thoughts to sift through. She needed to take some time to think about what liking Terence really meant for her. So far, she knew it meant that all these strange feelings she’d been experiencing around him finally had a name. And she could finally stop fighting them. 

_But did he like her back?_

Vidia had seemed thoroughly convinced he had. She explained it was the way he looked at her, which Tinker Bell didn’t exactly understand. How did looking convey so much more than talking? How was the magic of words so much more prominent in the eyes than it was the mouth? 

She didn’t know how to say it to him. They could look at each other all they wanted, but sooner or later Tinker Bell was going to crack. She couldn’t keep something like this from him for long, now that she’d named and identified it. Now that it posed a threat to their friendship. She remembered the adrenaline that had flowed through her when Terence had caught her, the excitement of being that close to him, the inevitable nervousness that followed suit. It had been too much for her, she couldn’t handle it, so she’d pushed him away like he’d burnt her. If that was the feeling Vidia had described, _liking_ someone . . . 

It explained why she’d felt flushed while he held her in his grip. 

It explained why her heart started beating faster every time he smiled at her. 

It explained why she got all warm and giddy inside whenever he complimented her. 

It explained everything. 

Out of all the fairies, Tink had not expected to get such an eye-opening conversation out of _Vidia_. She was impressed. Perhaps the fast-flying fairy had a soft side to her after all. 

“Tink?” 

The voice was familiar . . . It sounded like . . . 

“Hey, Tink!” It was Terence. The last person she’d expected to see right now.

She straightened her posture in a feeble attempt to get herself together. 

Terence wore his usual blue and brown dust keeper clothes, and his acorn cap was sideways on his head. Tinker Bell secretly found it adorable. 

“Hey,” she said, smiling softly, feeling warm. 

“How are you?” He landed next to her on the tree and took a seat. 

“I’m good,” Tink answered. “Just got a lot on my mind right now.” 

“Sometimes that gets the best of us . . . What’s on your mind?” Terence didn’t sound prying, or over-invasive. He just sounded genuinely curious. But Tink felt her chest tighten every time she thought about telling him. She couldn’t. 

She looked down, sighing. “It’s nothing. Just . . . Deadlines for work are piling up, and it’s a lot to handle right now.” 

Terence looked somewhat sympathetic, but he got a look in his eye. It sort of reminded her of the look Vidia had given her earlier. 

“Deadlines? Tink, you’re always weeks ahead of your deadlines. You’re far from the first fairy I’d think of who gets upset over them.” 

Tink fidgeted. 

“Um . . .” she said. “Well, these are for extra difficult projects.” 

“What kind of projects?” 

Tink bit her lip to keep from scowling. He really wasn’t taking no for an answer, was he. 

“That’s personal.” At his look of utter confusion, she quickly corrected herself. “I mean, my projects are- I _do_ have projects that are personal, just not these projects. These projects are- They’re just really time-consuming.” 

“As most good projects are?” Terence asked, chuckling. “I’ve never seen you discouraged over a time constraint on a project before.” 

Tink swallowed. Her list of excuses was running dry, as was her throat. 

“Fairy Mary wants them done a certain way,” she said slowly. “And I wanted to go in and make my own tweaks and modifications.” 

“Of course,” said Terence. 

“But she . . . she wouldn’t let me,” Tink said, a little more emotion beginning to shine through. “I had better ideas, better ways . . . And they were just pushed! To the side! With no consideration whatsoever.” 

“You know how Fairy Mary is with her rules,” said Terence, and Tink rolled her eyes. As much as she hated to admit it, he was right. 

“Yeah, I know, I just . . . thought I had a chance this time,” she said quietly, looking at him. “I mean, just the idea of asking her for my input scares me. Let alone actually telling her, voicing my mind . . . saying how I _really_ feel . . .” 

“It’s hard to voice your mind sometimes,” Terence mused, looking out at the view ahead of them. “Especially when you’re worried about hurting the other person’s feelings. I know Fairy Mary’s pretty fragile about her projects.” 

“Even more so when you know it would completely change the person’s opinion of you,” continued Tink, unaware she’d strayed from the topic of projects. “That’s when sharing your feelings is the hardest.” 

“Well . . .” said Terence, “you can’t ever know for sure, can you? There’s always that small chance you’re wrong about what they’d think.” 

“No, I’m pretty sure I’m right this time,” Tink argued, then her eyes widened as she immediately realized her mistake. 

“This time?” Terence asked, sounding mildly surprised. “Care to explain?” 

Tink couldn’t look at him. “Uh . . . Okay. So, there’s something I really wanna tell someone.” 

Terence waited patiently for her to go on. 

“And . . . I’m having trouble figuring out a way to say it that won’t make them freak out or change their opinion of me.” 

“In my personal experience,” began Terence, “if you tell them, and they change their opinion of you, that means you weren’t real friends. A real friend wouldn’t change their opinion of you.” 

“That’s the thing.” Tink rubbed her forehead. “We’re really good friends, this person and I, and this thing I want to tell them . . . it could ruin it.” 

“I’m sure that’s not true,” chided Terence. “Takes more than one secret to ruin a real friendship, trust me. What’s this thing that’s such a big deal, anyway?” 

Tink felt her cheeks color. She looked away from him immediately. 

“It’s . . . something I’ve never told them before.” 

“Is it something about them?” 

“Yes.” 

Terence looked back at her. “Is it good or bad?” 

“That depends.” 

“On?” 

“How they take it.” Tink bit her lip, swinging her legs rapidly back and forth on the tree branch. 

“But the thing itself, regardless of how they take it, is it a good thing or a bad thing? Like, a compliment or an insult? Which one are we talking about here?” 

“A . . . compliment. I think?” Tink put her cheeks in her hands to prevent Terence from seeing how red she was getting. 

“What kind of compliment? Is it about their personality, or looks?” 

“Uh . . . a little bit of both,” said Tink, still not making eye contact with him. 

“Oh, okay.” 

She looked back at Terence. He looked unsure if he should press further, but his eyes held some sort of glint. 

“Do I know them?” he asked. 

She nodded. “Pretty well, actually.” 

“Oh . . . Do you, um, like them at all?” 

Tink’s heart skipped.

“Do you?”

“Yeah . . . Um, I do.” 

Terence’s face fell. “Oh.” Then he perked up again, as if nothing had happened. Tink could have blinked and she’d have missed it. 

“That’s . . . great, Tink,” he said, but it sounded strained. And his eyes didn’t match. 

_Had Vidia been telling the truth?_

Vidia’s words circled in her head on repeat. 

Tink took a deep breath. 

“I . . . really like him,” she said, feeling her heart begin to beat faster, and faster. “A lot. So much that I’m afraid I’ll ruin what we have if I tell him.” 

“Why do you think that?” Terence all but chuckled, which made Tink’s eyebrows pop up in confusion. “What makes you so sure he doesn’t like you back?” 

“I . . .” Tink felt her heart flutter, and she held down on her bouncing knees with one hand. “Well, lately, I haven’t been so sure, actually . . .” 

“What do you mean?” Terence sounded amused, and very curious. 

“I mean . . .” Tink felt herself getting flustered again under his gaze. “I mean I can’t really explain with you _looking_ at me like that.” 

“Like what?” Terence smirked. This only darkened Tinker Bell’s cheeks. “Aw, Tink, you’re blushing!” 

“Alright, I’m not saying anything else,” Tink said stubbornly as she folded her arms. 

“Hey, no, I’m sorry, it’s just- it looked really cute. You’re cute when you’re nervous. I mean, I don’t think it’s cute _that_ you’re nervous, I’m not saying- I mean-” He sighed. “Nevermind. I’ll stop talking now.” 

Tink couldn’t help but smile at him. “Now look who’s nervous.” 

Normally he would’ve taken the bait, but now his smile faded. “So you want to tell this guy how you feel.” That twinge of disappointment was back. It made Tink’s heart fall hearing him talk that way. She wanted to tell him the truth, but she was afraid. 

“Yeah, but I can't." 

“Why?” 

“Because I . . . Because . . .” Tink racked her brain for a suitable answer, but found none. Normally you couldn’t get her to shut up, but now the one time she needed her chatterbox it failed her. 

“Because our friendship means a lot to me,” said Tinker Bell, looking him deep in his eyes. Maybe her eyes could say something her lips couldn’t. “And I couldn’t stand to think what would happen if we lost it.” 

“What if he felt the same way?” asked Terence. 

Tink’s eyes widened. “That’s . . . always possible,” she conceded, blinking heavily. “But-” 

“What’s the worst that could happen?” asked Terence. His face looked a little brighter. “You ask him, the worst that could happen is he’d say no.” 

“And ruin our entire friendship, everything we’ve been building together these past few years?” said Tink, scooting closer to him. “I don’t think so.” She looked down at her hands, which were shaking slightly. She tucked them between her knees. 

“You don’t know if you never try.” Terence gazed out at the view ahead. The corners of his mouth curled upward. 

Tink jumped slightly, and for the first time during their conversation she wondered if Terence had caught on to who she was really talking about. She slowly relaxed her legs and moved her hands from their hiding place to on the two spots of wood on either side of her. She gasped; she’d landed her hand very close to Terence’s. In fact, they were almost brushing fingertips, if she leaned in a little closer . . . 

She looked up at him, and saw that he was looking right back at her, sporting a small smile of his own. _So he’d dropped the despair, after all . . ._

“Terence.” She fought hard to maintain eye contact. 

“Wait . . .” Terence chuckled. When he saw Tink wasn’t budging, she could’ve sworn she saw his face start to redden. “Tink, that sounds like . . . a lot to keep in.” He scratched the back of his head, digging under his acorn hat. “It might be better for both of you if you just told him how you feel.” 

“I, um . . .” Tink cleared her throat. “I am. It’s, um . . .” She looked down, then back up. “It’s you, Terence.” Her heart was about to burst out of her chest. She saw his face morph from that playful smirk he’d had earlier to a calm yet colorful, vibrant happiness that seeped deeply into his eyes. It gave her an encouraging push. 

“You’re the one I have feelings f-for.” She locked eye contact. Whatever sort of trance her body must have been in to have allowed her to get to this point, she needed it to hold on for just a little bit longer so she could hold a stare to him without collapsing entirely. When he didn’t say anything, she internally panicked. She froze, eyes widening. 

Had she just ruined everything? 

“Tink . . .” Terence was looking at her in that _way_ again. Tink felt weak at the knees. He scooted in even closer, until their hips touched. Tink felt a jolt of energy spread through her at the contact. 

Terence blinked a few times, looking stunned. “You . . . Have feelings? For me?" 

She looked at him, deep into his eyes. Conveying what her words could not. 

Terence only returned her smile. Then, almost in slow motion, he leaned in toward Tinker Bell. Tink found herself slowly leaning in toward him, admiring how the light shone behind him and lit up his ash blonde hair, how it flickered back and forth in his eyes like turquoise gems. At that moment, he’d never looked more handsome. 

Tink had a dreamy smile as Terence leaned in closer, reaching out a hand to cup her cheek. Tink jumped slightly at the contact, but settled as she leaned in closer to him. 

“I’ve wanted to kiss you for so long,” he murmured against her lips, each puff of air making her shudder with desire. “Can I?” 

Unable to form words, Tink nodded, closing her eyes and breathing in deep as Terence softly pressed his lips against hers, thumb gently stroking her jaw. 

It was an unfamiliar sensation, but not unpleasant . . . Terence’s hand traced lightly back and forth on her cheek. Then, all too quickly, he moved his lips away. Tink inhaled a mouthful of air, and she opened her eyes, confused. 

Terence gulped a breath of his own, looking as stunned as she felt. She’d just kissed her best friend. And looking at him, cheeks flushed, eyes flashing, smiling gracefully, she wanted to do it again. 

Tink reached out and placed a hand on his face, gently pulling him back in. Their lips met once again, only this time with more fervor and strength. She was shocked not only by the feeling itself but its sheer tenderness. She’d expected hard, and rough, based on what her friends had told her about their kissing experiences, but this was none of that. This was . . . new, unexplored. Still learning the way each other moved. Soft, kind, aware. 

They pulled apart, Terence’s eyes looking unfocused for a moment before landing on Tinker Bell. 

“I like you too, Tink,” he said. He planted one last chaste kiss on her lips. “I’ve been wanting to tell you, for so long-” 

“I’m only just now realizing all of it,” said Tink, in awe. “I think I’ve been feeling like this for a while, only I didn’t know what I was feeling.” 

“Well, I think it was worth the wait." 

Tink couldn’t suppress the grin that formed after that. She reached forward and pulled him into a tight hug. His arms wrapped around her back, pulling her in close. She exhaled into him and rested her head on his shoulder, smiling softly. She felt like a weight had been lifted off her chest. 

She couldn’t believe it . . . After all this time, she got to call Terence . . . _Hers_. She felt a spark of affection rush through her chest. 

“Oh, I’m so glad I finally told you,” said Tink into his shoulder. 

Terence rubbed his hand softly up her back. Then he pulled away to get a better look at her. 

"I've actually been wanting to tell you for a while, but I didn't know how." His smile faded. "I was just so afraid I'd lose you. I kept it all in because I didn't know if you felt the same way about me." 

Tink felt a swell of affection rush through her. Her hands did not leave their spot on Terence's forearms. 

"I've never felt this way before," she said. "So I don't really know what I'm doing." 

Terence chuckled again. “Oh, believe it, Tink.” He pulled her in close with one arm and kissed the top of her head. "Me neither," he said. "But we can figure it out, together." 

She leaned into Terence as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder and looked out at the view ahead. It really was a lovely view. Even with the busy pace of Tinker’s Nook, Tink felt rather calm watching the other fairies from above. It gave her a sense of peace, actually, seeing how the regular world went on even after her world was turned upside down, and she and her best friend kissed. She felt like she was in a dream, and she never wanted to wake up. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> As writing often goes, things didn't exactly happen according to plan.  
> Enjoy it while it lasts <:)  
> Also,  
> Does Silvermist have feelings for Terence? Discuss


	6. 6

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lots of drama but think you'll like the ending :)

It was easy for Terence to decide, with this breathtakingly beautiful fairy sitting next to him, that this was the happiest day of his life. 

Tink turned to face him, sitting criss-cross on the branch. Terence’s hand slowly slid off her shoulder, down her back, and around. Tink extended her hands, and he gently took them, holding hers together. 

“I can’t believe this is real,” said Tink quietly. 

Terence reached forward and tucked a stray strand of hair behind Tink’s ear. His hand lingered on her cheek for a moment. Tink closed her eyes at the tenderness of the gesture, before slowly opening them and smiling softly at him. 

“Tink, you have no idea how long . . . From the moment I met you, I saw something in you. I knew you were special.” 

Tinker Bell looked down, then back up, scarlet coating her cheeks once again. 

“You’ve done so much for me,” she said, “and you don’t even know it. Terence, you were the one who helped me realize how important my talent is. Without even trying! If it hadn’t been for you, I would’ve . . . I would’ve . . .” 

“Hey, Tink, it’s okay.” He rubbed her hands softly. “I don’t want to think about what would’ve happened if I hadn’t been there. I’m just glad I found you when I did.” 

The corners of her mouth turned up in a smile. “You’re my best friend,” she said. “I was so scared to tell you . . . I didn’t want to ruin our friendship.” 

“What if I told you,” said Terence, giving her small hands another rub, “that we didn’t have to?” 

Tinker Bell’s blue eyes shimmered. 

Terence wasn’t sure who leaned in first. All he knew was her magnetism was too strong to ignore. She looked so perfect sitting there beside him, hair all done up and stray strands hanging messily around her face after a long day of work. And he’d been denying himself far too long. He leaned in, and for an eternity it felt like he hovered there in purgatory, face inches from hers, noses brushing, before he dived in and captured her lips in a passionate kiss. 

He felt her jump slightly, so he stopped. But then she relaxed, exhaled, and cupped his cheeks. So they continued, and she opened her mouth, wordlessly coaxing him to do the same. He did not hesitate to reciprocate. For never having kissed anyone before, she was a natural, and soon, their tongues were dancing in tandem. 

His body flooded with want. His chest was about to explode. If Tink got him this riled up just from a _kiss_ , he couldn’t imagine . . . 

No. He couldn’t think about that right now. This was all new and so sudden to her, to both of them; they couldn’t rush in like that. But when Tink pulled him in closer so that their chests were flush, kissing him harder, Terence wasn’t sure if he could do slow. He’d never been half this attracted to anyone in his life. 

He kissed her until she was breathless, and she pulled away from him, closing her eyes and placing her hands on his shoulders for support. “Wow,” she said. “That was . . .”

“Yeah.” Terence lightly rubbed her arm, and then let go of her. “You’re a really good kisser.” 

Her breathing slowed, and she looked at him. “So a while ago, Rosetta kinda . . . told me how to do it.” 

Terence’s eyes widened. “Are you _sure_ you haven’t kissed anyone else before?” 

“Yes, I’m sure . . . Are you sure you’re not jealous?” 

Terence felt his cheeks heating up. 

“That answers that question,” Tink said smugly. 

“Don’t make me kiss that cute smirk off your face, cause I will,” said Terence, biting back a laugh. He refused to give Tink the satisfaction. 

She laughed. But before he could go about fulfilling his promise, light suddenly hit him straight in the eye, nearly blinding him. He squeezed his eyes shut, facing away from the source of the light. 

“Terence? Are you okay?” 

“Yeah, I’m alright, it’s just that light hit me pretty hard.” 

“Where?” 

“That way.” He pointed behind him, still shielding his sore eyes. Tinker Bell craned her neck around him to get a look, and by the sound of her yelp it sounded like the light had hit her, too. 

“What is that?” 

“I don’t know, but I think it’s coming from inside.” 

“Wanna check it out?” Tink stood up, fluttering in front of Terence, arm extended. Terence removed his hands from his eyes and took her hand. 

Both fairies flew toward the light, shielding their eyes, looking sideways. Her door had been left open, to let the nice summer draft in, and Terence looked down at the floor to see the source of the light. It was one of her sharp, metal lost things; the light had reflected. 

Tink bent down to pick up the lost thing, and as soon as she moved it the light disapperated. “What in the world . . .” 

But then, Terence glanced up. At the real source of light. Coming from her dresser. 

“Tink . . . _Look.”_

It was the water lily, but it was no longer dull and grey. The flower was bursting with life, and a thick layer of pixie dust sheathed its white-pink petals tinted gold from the glow. 

Tinker Bell gasped. She ran toward the flower, Terence right behind her. They stood side by side, drinking in its beauty. 

Terence could now admit he’d been completely wrong about the flower; it was one of the most incredible things he’d ever seen. Its strange calming powers worked wonders on him. He felt himself relaxing as he put an arm around Tinker Bell’s waist, slowly drawing her in. 

“I’ve never seen it glow like this before,” said Tink, in awe. 

“So, I might be kinda glad you talked me into it,” Terence admitted. 

Tinker Bell grinned and practically jumped for joy. “See? I knew it! I knew you’d like it. You just had to give it a chance.” 

She settled back into his side, and if her contented sigh was anything to go by the calming powers seemed to be working on her, too. 

“I just wanna know,” said Terence, more taken by the mystery of the glow than the glow itself. _“What_ makes it glow?” 

“I’ve never noticed any kind of pattern,” said Tinker Bell. “It’s always been so random. Maybe it just glows when it feels like it?” 

“Wouldn’t that be something,” chuckled Terence, “but it’s never looked better.” _You’ve never looked better_. 

“What was that?” asked Tink. 

Terence jumped, and turned a deep shade of red. Had he said that outloud? 

Tink looked up at him, wearing that same adorable smile. 

“I was just . . .” Terence cleared his throat. “Admiring how beautiful you are.” 

Her glow seemed to get a little bit brighter. It was true, whenever fairies were extremely happy or around ones they loved, their glows would brighten. 

“You have to stop making me blush,” she said. “And let me give you a compliment for once. Like . . .” She paused. “I think you’re very handsome. And you’re always so kind. To everyone. Especially me. You bring me breakfast, you work on projects with me, you listen to me vent about my friends when they get on my nerves.” 

Terence laughed at that one. Then he let go of her, and she turned to face him. 

“I’m so lucky to have you in my life,” she finished. 

He felt his chest swell with pride at having made her happy, and he felt very flattered. Tinker Bell had never complimented him that much before. 

_Never before have I wanted to make you mine so much_. 

He was about to open his mouth and tell her exactly how he felt, but then came a knock at the door they’d left cracked. 

“Tinker Bell?” 

“Miss Bell, are you in?” 

Terence wanted to face palm.

Tinker Bell would be the _death_ of him. 

Her gaze lingered on him as she parted from his hold. “I’m sorry . . . about them. Timing’s not really their strong suit.” 

“I’ve noticed,” he said. “But it’s really alright, it’s not your fault.” 

Tinker Bell smiled at him and headed to the door, opening it and letting a most eager Clank and Bobble come inside. 

“Miss Bell, we’ve been lookin’ all over for ya!” exclaimed Bobble, blue eyes bulging bigger than ever through his goggles. 

“We’ve got loads of work to do,” said Clank. “Oh, look who it is. Fly with you, Terence!” 

“Hey,” he greeted from his spot at the dresser. 

“Fairy Mary wants us all to report to the workshop straight away,” said Bobble. 

“But why?” asked Tink. “I’ve already finished my work for today.” 

“New orders are in,” said Clank. “We need all hands on deck.” 

“Seriously? But I’ve been working all day.” 

“And we haven’t?” argued Bobble. “We’re tired, too, but it’s Fairy Mary’s orders.” 

Tinker Bell sighed, rubbing her forehead. “I can’t get a second to myself around here, can I . . . Alright, fine.” 

Satisfied, Clank and Bobble turned around and headed on out, presumably expecting Tinker Bell to follow suit. But she didn’t leave just yet. She turned back around to face Terence, who’d stayed over by the flower. She approached him. 

“I’m sorry I keep having to leave you like this.” 

Terence shook his head. He didn’t want Tinker Bell to feel bad. 

“It’s okay,” he said, sincerely. “I’ll live.” 

“But I was having so much fun . . .” She walked closer to him, and he felt his heart start to work. “To be continued?” She gave him a peck on the lips, and his fingertips thrummed with electricity. He could only nod, spellbound by her kiss. 

“Yeah. Definitely.” _Had that sounded lame?_ His mind worked in overdrive. 

Apparently it hadn’t to her, for she smiled at him and let a dainty hand linger on his cheek for a moment before flying away. 

____

“And then . . .” Tinker Bell’s grin hurt her face. She and her friends were gathered around the flower garden where Rosetta was planting some sproutlings. Tink had finally finished her work at the shop, and the sun had almost dipped completely beneath the horizon. It cast a dark orange hue on the fairies, and the first sign of stars could be seen twinkling in the twilight sky. 

“He kissed me.” 

Her speech was followed by a chorus of gasps. Rosetta actually stopped what she was doing and hugged her. 

“Oh, sugarplum,” she squealed, “that’s great! We’ve only been waiting forever.” 

“Oh, was it dreamy? Was it everything you imagined?” asked Iridessa. 

“It was . . . I don’t know if I can even describe it.” 

Tinker Bell felt slightly embarrassed her friends were giving her so much attention, even if it was for good reason. She didn’t know where she and Terence stood, because they’d ended things prematurely. She didn’t want to get her friends’ hopes up if Terence was only acting on impulse and hadn’t really meant what he said. 

“But . . .” She frowned, twirling with a stray hair. Her friends clung onto her words. “I don’t know if he really . . . wants me like that.” 

“Honey, what are you talkin about?” exclaimed Rosetta. “Of course he does!” 

“I can tell you for a fact he does,” said Silvermist. 

“Someone like Terence wouldn’t just kiss you like that and not mean it,” insisted Fawn. 

“Guys, I know you want to believe that he meant it, but, I can’t just jump to conclusions. Bad things happen when I do that.” 

Her friends couldn’t really disagree there. 

“So . . . he didn’t ask you?” said Iridessa hesitantly. 

Tink sighed. “No, he didn’t. But, Clank and Bobble came over before we really had the chance to talk. I think we were both really taken aback by what happened. Maybe he just needs time to think.” 

“What’s there to think about?” asked Rosetta. “Terence should know that with a fairy like you, there’s no thinkin; only doing. He needs to get his head on straight and ask you before I make him.” 

“And what would that accomplish?” said Tink. She frowned. Maybe Terence had wanted to ask her. Maybe Clank and Bobble’s untimely arrival had interrupted his train of thought. She couldn’t rule that out. Besides, he’d seemed so sincere . . . 

“I kept feeling like . . . my heart was racing. So fast. And I wanted to keep kissing him. I didn’t want to stop.” 

“Aww, Tink!” 

“You _like_ him.” 

“How did he kiss you?” asked Silvermist. “Was it slow and sweet, or hard and passionate?” 

“We kinda did . . . both,” said Tinker Bell, which earned her squeals and gasps of delight. “First he kissed me slowly, gently, like we were both a little unsure of what we were doing. And then . . .” She felt blush coat her cheeks as she remembered how their second, and third, kisses were. “We, um . . .” 

“You made out?” Rosetta asked with a grin. 

“Yeah.” 

“Tink, I’m so proud of you!” exclaimed Iridessa. “Our baby’s not a baby anymore.” 

“Funny you say that, Dess. When’s the last time you kissed someone?” 

Dess paused. “I’m . . . Kinda going through a dry spell right now.” 

“Tink, I wanna hear more about the kiss. Like, what led up to it? Did he tell you how he felt first? Or did he just lay one on you out of nowhere? Tell me more!” exclaimed Fawn. 

“Well,” said Tink, “he came over to say hi, and I’d just finished talking to Vidia. Ironically about the same thing. She was saying how she thought Terence had feelings for me, and I ended up telling her I had feelings for him, too.”

“Vidia? Giving relationship advice?” asked Rosetta. “That’s not something you hear every day.” 

“That’s gotta mean they’re obviously in love, for someone as romantically clueless as Vidia to notice,” said Iridessa. 

“Hey, we aren’t in love,” defended Tink, though she wasn’t sure why she was getting so defensive. “This is all just so . . . new to me.” 

“I understand, cupcake,” said Rosetta. “Keep going.” 

“So after she left, Terence came over to visit. He knew something was off with me, and I ended up telling him . . . without really telling him.” 

“What do you mean?” asked Fawn. 

“I said I was having trouble figuring out how to tell a friend how I felt about them . . . without telling him who it was.” 

“Oh, my,” said Rosetta. “Well, he figured it out, right?” 

“It took awhile,” said Tink. “I wasn’t very clear, so at first he thought I was just having trouble telling a friend something important. Then he figured out that I liked the friend, and he seemed . . . disappointed that it wasn’t him?” 

“That’s a good sign,” said Iridessa. “Of course, that seems about right.” 

“And then I kept talking about how I was so afraid to tell this person how I felt because I didn’t want to ruin our friendship. And Terence said that the worst that could happen is they’d say no.” 

“That’s such crass advice,” sighed Fawn. “There’s obviously _so_ much more that could happen.” 

“That’s what I said. Then he said that I wouldn’t know if I never tried.” 

“What did you do?” 

“Well, I told him, and then we kissed.” 

“Wait, so you basically poured your heart out to him without even telling him it was him?” exclaimed Silvermist. “That’s kinda genius.” 

“I don’t know about that, Sil,” said Tink. “Because now there’s this crazy whirlwind of emotions stirring inside me, and I have all these feelings to juggle, and it’s driving me crazy not knowing what he wants.” 

“Sugar, it seems pretty clear what he wants,” said Rosetta. 

“I’m proud of you for making the first move,” said Fawn. “That’s pretty uncommon, you know.” 

“Vidia actually said I should make the first move.” 

“You’re taking relationship advice from _Vidia?”_ Rosetta cocked an eyebrow. 

“Well, it worked, didn’t it? At least, I . . . think it did.” 

“Oh, honey.” Rosetta flew closer to her. “Don’t doubt yourself like that. Do you have any idea how stunning you are, not to mention sweet, and funny? You are a _knockout_ , and Terence is probably trying not to freak out right now over how lucky he is to have you.” 

“Thanks, Ro,” said Tink, looking down. “But I’m not sure if we did the right thing . . . What if he realizes how crazy this is and just wants to be friends?” 

“Let me tell you what’s crazy,” said Rosetta, “is you two denying yourselves or your feelings for a second longer.”

“I’m with her,” said Silvermist. “After my talk with him today, I can say he definitely doesn’t want to just be friends.” 

Tinker Bell's eyes widened. "You talked with him, about me?" 

Silvermist looked guilty. “While we were talking at the stream, I may or may not have let it slip that you had feelings for him.” 

“Sil, you didn’t!” exclaimed Tink, covering her mouth. “How could you expose me like that?” 

“I couldn’t help myself, the way he was going on and on about you. I couldn’t find his off-switch!”

“Why did you tell him I had feelings for him, Silvermist?”

Silvermist sighed. “I promise, Tink, I wasn’t trying to meddle. Okay? I just . . . I hated seeing him upset like that. I wanted to give him some hope, when I could tell that . . . that you liked him back.” 

“How could you tell? I didn’t figure it out until earlier today when I talked to Vidia.” 

Silvermist chuckled. “Tell? Are you kidding? You aren’t exactly subtle about it.” 

“You went to Vidia before coming to us?” asked Fawn. 

“No, it’s not like that,” said Tinker Bell, beginning to feel agitated. “She brought him up, not me, and it’s not like I _meant_ to tell her. Just . . .” She sighed. “Nevermind. This conversation never happened.” 

“No, Tink, don’t-” 

“Don’t be like that,” pleaded Iridessa, stepping closer to her. “We all only want you to be happy, that’s all. Promise.” 

“Tinker Bell, I’m sorry I told Terence you had feelings for him,” said Silvermist. “It wasn’t my place. I should have told him just to talk to you directly. I’m sorry.” 

“But you _did_ tell him to talk to her,” said Rosetta. Silvermist cast her a look, but it was too late. 

“You told him . . . Wait, you _knew_ about this?” Tink asked Rosetta. “What are you guys doing, sneaking around behind my back? This isn’t a game!” 

“Of course it’s not, I know it’s not, I’m sorry,” said Silvermist, placing her hands on Tink’s shoulders. Tink shook them off. 

“No, that isn’t- You don’t get to do that,” she said, crossing her arms. “He wouldn’t have . . . He wouldn’t have come to see me today if it weren’t for you, would he?” 

A downcast Silvermist bit her lip and tapped her foot. 

“Would he?” 

Silvermist looked up at her. “Tink-” 

“No!” Tink shook her head, anger bubbling in her blood. Her glow was beginning to redden; she could feel it. How could her friends do this to her? 

“You don’t get to mess with my life like that,” she said hotly. 

“We weren’t!” said Rosetta. 

“We were only trying to help,” said Silvermist softly. 

“Tink, please,” said Fawn, cautiously stepping closer. “This is all a big misunderstanding.” 

“I don’t care what you were trying to do!” Tink yelled at Silvermist, temper arresting her self control once again. “And I don’t care what you thought I felt for Terence. That was _my_ conversation to have, and mine alone to have with him.” 

“You’re right, I’m sorry,” said Silvermist, looking close to tears. 

Iridessa glared at Tink. “Don’t yell at her like that,” she said. “Terence went to _her_ , not the other way around. And looking at the way you talk to us, I can sorta see why.” 

“Oh, great, you were in on it too?” Tink exclaimed, ignoring the hurt she felt at the words. “Can I name a fairy here who _wasn’t_ in on my feelings for Terence before Terence was?” 

“Oh please, Tinker Bell, drop the attitude!” Rosetta yelled, stomping her foot. Tink jumped, backing up and clamping her mouth shut. When Rosetta real-named her, she knew she was in trouble. 

“Don’t act like it’s some big secret you liked him,” Rosetta went on, tone dripping with resentment. “You two were the _last_ fairies to figure it out, believe it or not, so stop blaming us for your inability to get in touch with _your_ feelings! And how about instead of yelling at Sil, _thank_ her for not just sending him on his way and saying not a chance. Which is what I would’ve done if I’d known this was the kind of thank you I would have gotten. Now, do you treat Terence like this, too, or do you save it special just for us?” 

Tink’s cheeks reddened with shame, her chin wobbled, and her shoulders shook furiously. 

“Tink,” said Fawn, but Tink squeezed her eyes shut and turned the other way. She took several large steps the other way and buried her face in her hands as hot tears seeped out of her eyes. 

“Oh, great, now look what you did,” said Fawn. “You went and made her cry.” 

“Oh, I didn’t mean . . . Well, she shouldn’t have talked to Silvermist that way,” Rosetta defended. 

“But-”

“She’s right,” said Silvermist with a sniff. “I overstepped . . . I deserved it.” 

“No you didn’t, you were trying to help!” 

“But I should’ve-”

“I don’t want to hear another word,” said Rosetta. “Sil, if this is what you get for being a good friend, then maybe you should-” 

“Everybody stop!” exclaimed Iridessa. “This is all so _stupid_. We’re arguing over nothing.” 

Tink turned around and peered up at her from between her fingers. 

Fawn flew to her. “Hey, Tink, you don’t have to stay here right now. Let’s go for a fly, you and me.” 

“N-No,” Tink said shakily, shaking her head. “I’m fine, Fawn, I’ll stay right here.” 

She lifted her head up, drew in a deep breath, and exhaled slowly. Then she turned to look at her friend. 

“I shouldn’t have freaked out like that,” she said quietly. “Come on.” She led Fawn back over to the group of girls. 

“Look, Tink,” said Iridessa, “I swear this isn’t what you think it is. We aren’t plotting and scheming behind your back. This all happened really fast, and Silvermist didn’t know how to react. She did the best she could with everything Terence was telling her.”

Tink looked at Silvermist. Her eyes were glassy, and she sported a small frown. 

“Tink,” said Silvermist. “I really thought you already knew how you felt, though I know that’s no excuse. I’m sorry.” 

Tink pursed her lips, feeling guilty for yelling at the water fairy. She knew her kind was sensitive, and she’d taken advantage of that. 

“No, Sil, _I’m_ sorry. I shouldn’t have yelled at you . . . I guess this is all still just a really touchy subject for me and I shouldn’t have brought it up if I wasn’t ready to really talk about it. And that means accepting the possibility that maybe I wasn’t the only one aware of it . . . You did the right thing. I just wasn’t ready to hear it. I’m sorry.” 

Silvermist’s frown turned into the smallest smile. “Thanks, Tink. It’s okay.” 

It made her feel worse. How could she have lost her temper at this sweet girl? Silvermist could never hurt a fly. And here she was . . . taking out her fear of Terence changing his mind on someone she was supposed to call a friend. 

Things didn’t feel right. Silvermist still looked sad, and Tinker Bell was still sorry. But before she could pounce on the silence, Fawn beat her to it. 

“Tink,” she began, “how would you like to come to a picnic with all of us tomorrow night?” 

“But I’m-” said Iridessa, 

“It’ll be later,” said Fawn. “After we all finish work.” She looked at Tink. “Are you in?” 

Tink wasn’t sure if she wanted to go to a picnic with her friends after everything that had just transpired. But she could tell that Fawn was making an effort to restore peace, and she wanted to respect that. “Yeah,” she said. “I’ll go.” 

“And you can invite Terence,” Fawn added. “Only if you want, though.”

“Uh, are you sure that’s a good idea?” asked Rosetta, folding her arms. “Won’t that make things kinda . . . awkward?” 

Fawn widened her eyes and looked at Rosetta. Tink wasn’t sure what kind of silent communication was taking place, but all she knew was she wanted nothing to do with it. And she certainly wasn’t inviting Terence after everything she had just found out. 

“I said only if she wants,” said Fawn. “And I thought it could be fun, with or without him.” 

“Alright,” sighed Rosetta, fluffing out her dress. She looked at Tinker Bell. “If you wanna bring him, then you go right ahead, sunshine. And I’m sorry for snapping at ya earlier. I just don’t like it when you take a tone, is all.” 

Tinker Bell cast her eyes down, feeling undeserving of the apology. She nodded at her friend, plastering on her best brave face. “It’s fine. I shouldn’t have lost my temper.” 

Rosetta smiled at her. 

“Tink, do you-” began Fawn, 

“Actually, I’m gonna go,” said Tink, hugging her arms tightly. She wanted to be anywhere but here. “I’m gonna turn in early.” 

“Okay,” said Fawn, sounding uncertain, “we’ll see you tomorrow?” 

Tink nodded, flying away as her thoughts whirred away in her head, possibly even more unsettled than they’d been before. 

She wondered what would have happened if Bobble and Clank hadn’t walked in. She wondered how she was going to handle herself around Terence next time they saw each other. They’d left on a really awkward note . . . Were they just going to pretend nothing had happened and go back to normal? Tink realized with a tug in her chest that she didn’t want that at all. But did he? 

____

Fawn watched her friend leave, then turned around to face the other fairies, wearing a smirk. 

“I know that look,” said Silvermist. “What are you up to?” 

“Well, actually, funny you mention it,” said Fawn, “it’s about that picnic we’re having. Or, not having.” 

Iridessa raised an eyebrow. “Elaborate . . .” 

“I don’t know what you guys got from that story, but to me it sounds like Tink and Terence need a little . . . push.” 

“What do you mean?” asked Rosetta. 

Fawn sighed. “Alright. Here’s what’s gonna happen. Tink thinks we’re having a picnic tomorrow night, right? Well, we need to figure out a way to get Terence there without her finding out.” 

“I still don’t understand what this has to do with the picnic,” said Iridessa. 

“We’re not going to the picnic!” said Fawn. “She just needs to _think_ we are, and Terence needs to think we are . . .” 

The fairies raised their eyebrows. 

Fawn face-palmed. 

“We’re setting up Tink and Terence on a surprise romantic, picnic date without either of them knowing the other is going.” 

“Oh!” 

“Oh, okay!” 

“Why, that’s a great idea!” 

Fawn smiled, pleased with her friends’ reactions. 

“And I’ll take care of asking Terence, since I’m pretty sure after tonight she won’t herself.” 

Fawn realized tomorrow she had quite a busy day with the animals, and wasn’t sure when she’d be able to carve a time to sneak away to the dust depot, so she decided to do it tonight. 

“Wait, where are you going?” asked Iridessa as Fawn flapped her wings. 

“To ask him.” And with that, she took off to the pixie dust tree. 

It was a short flight from the gardens, and Fawn flew toward the depot in hopes of spotting a certain blonde sparrowman. When she got there, she was disappointed to find only his coworkers Stone, Flint, and Bolt, along with a brunette and a fairy she recognized as Midnight. 

“Hey, guys,” she greeted, waving and sounding as friendly as she could. “Have any of you seen Terence?” 

Stone scoffed, nudging Bolt. “Terence has got multiple ladies coming here after him, and we can’t even get one.” 

Fawn furrowed her eyebrows, placing her hands on her hips. “What was that? Wanna say that to my face?” 

“Oh, nothing, Fawn,” said Stone. “We haven’t seen him, sorry.” 

“Actually,” said Midnight, her honey brown eyes gleaming, “he’s still here. He’s going over some stuff with Fairy Gary. Want me to fetch him for you?”

“Oh, only if he’s- Sure, that’d be- I’ll only be a minute,” Fawn stammered. 

Midnight smiled sweetly at her. “I’ll be right back.” 

Moments later she returned with Terence by her side. “Fawn would like to speak with you.” 

Terence brightened when he saw her. “Fawn!” he exclaimed. “What brings you to this neck of the woods?” 

“Well, actually, I was gonna ask if you wanted to come to a picnic with us tomorrow night, at Sunflower Meadow?” 

“A picnic?” asked Terence. “Sure, I’d-” 

“He can’t,” said Midnight. She cast Terence a look, then smiled sadly at Fawn. “He has restocks tomorrow night, with me. Remember?” 

Terence looked between her and Fawn, gaze finally setting on Midnight. “I can get it done early. I don’t have much to do tomorrow. I’ll come in on my break.” 

Midnight put up a finger. “But-” 

“I’ll be there, Fawn,” said Terence with a smile. “What time?” 

“Eight,” said Fawn. “Rosetta and Iridessa work late, so that’s the earliest we could do.” 

“Eight’s perfect,” he replied, and Midnight didn’t look too happy. Fawn wondered what her deal was. She could understand Tink not being her biggest fan. 

“I can’t believe you’re setting me up to do restocks all by myself,” whined Midnight, setting her lips in a pout. 

“I’m not, I’m still getting mine done,” Terence insisted. “I won’t leave you a sack more than your fair share, promise.” 

“Fine,” said Midnight with a sigh, turning her head towards Fawn so that her black ponytail flipped. “But Fairy Gary _won’t_ be pleased.” She did her best to glare at Fawn. 

Fawn scoffed. “He just said he’d get it done. Lay off-” 

“Come on,” Terence interrupted, wisely, for Fawn would have spoken her two grains, “you know Fairy Gary won’t mind. He doesn’t care when the work gets done as long as it gets done. Speaking of work, I have some stuff to get back to. I’ll see you tomorrow, Fawn!” He waved to her before flying off. 

“I just can’t believe this,” Midnight huffed, shooting Fawn another dirty look. “Terence is ditching our work assignment for that yellow-headed skank!” 

“Hey, that’s my friend you’re talking about,” Fawn seethed, flying up close and personal into Midnight’s space. She was aware she was shorter than the dust keeper fairy, but she didn’t let that interfere with her stature. 

“Back away from me,” instructed Midnight through her teeth, narrowing her eyes. “What is it you animal fairies do all day, anyway? Roll around in dirt? I want no part of it.” She put her hands up. 

Fawn couldn’t believe the nerve of this fairy. First she insulted her friend, then her _talent_? She wouldn’t stand for it. 

“What is it you dust keepers do around here, anyway? Collect dust? That sounds hard.” 

Midnight gave her a look that could have killed. “Actually, I’ll have you know, a lot more goes into it than just _collecting dust_. There’s rations, proportions, calculations . . . All too complicated for your simple mind, I’m sure-” 

“Hey, Midnight, why don’t you just come back to work,” suggested the exaggerated brunette. She was promptly ignored. 

“What do you care what Terence does?” said Fawn. “You’re not his keeper.” She backed up because unlike some fairies around here, she was respectful. 

“I care when it involves our work, which lately it has. He’s always going off on his break to see her, and leaving us to clean up after him here.” 

“It’s his break, he can do what he wants with it,” Fawn defended. “And who says Tink’s going to be at the picnic, anyway? What business is it of yours?” 

“Because she’s your friend?” Midnight tried. “I know you’re all buddy-buddy with her. And lately all that fairy has done is destroy my work ethic!” 

Fawn was lost. “What are you talking about?” 

“Earlier this week, when he skimped on deliveries so he could go with you guys to the falls. Yeah, I know about that. And now this? When is it going to stop?” 

“Oh, don’t be so dramatic.” Fawn rolled her eyes. “It’s one picnic. I think you’ll live.” 

Midnight glared at her. “Get lost, animal fairy,” she said icily. 

“I have a name, you know,” glowered Fawn. Then she turned around to fly home. 

“Yeah, don’t care,” called Midnight to her receding form. 

_____

Tinker Bell flew with a basket full of bread and berries en route to Sunflower Meadow. She hadn’t heard from Terence all day, and she was ready to have a good night with her girls after a long day’s work. She figured she could use this time to enjoy her friends’ company even after everything that had happened yesterday. So she headed to the picnic with a smile on her face, ready to enjoy the night and the fireflies. 

She got to Sunflower Meadow, and sure enough she found the blankets facing the scattered crimson remains of the sunset. There was food and drinks all set up in baskets, and she could already see the fireflies buzzing off in the distance. There were even some floating lanterns to give the area some light. 

But no fairies . . . How could that be? They’d told her 8:00 and judging by the sky and Tink’s clock ten minutes earlier, it was definitely 8:00. 

“Okay . . .” She landed and sat lightly on one of the blankets, helping herself to a scone because hunger overtook her manners. “This is weird . . .” They’d be there soon. They were just running late. 

Five minutes passed. No one showed. 

Ten minutes passed. No one showed. 

Tink decided if no one was here in ten more minutes, which she reasoned was plenty of time to sit around and wait, she would leave. 

Fifteen minutes passed, and her patience wore thin. She sat back on her elbows, legs splayed out. 

Twenty minutes. Nobody. 

Tink was boiling with anger. Some friends she had. She glanced back to her basket to her untouched berries and bread, and was about to lift it and leave when she heard a voice. 

“Hey, guys! Sorry I’m late!” 

She looked up, and saw Terence flying through the sky. He couldn’t seem to stop surprising her, could he? She felt herself beginning to smile, anger evaporating. She stood up. 

“Terence?” she asked softly, not believing it to be true. She hadn’t invited him! How had he found his way? 

“Hey, Tink!” He flew down and landed on the blanket, dusting off his pants. “Restocks took a little longer than expected, but . . .” He looked around, and realization dawned on his face. “Where is everybody?” 

“They bailed,” said Tink, glancing down. For some reason looking at him was difficult. 

“Oh . . . Well, I’m sorry you’ve had to spend all this time by yourself,” said Terence. Tink looked back up at him. 

“It’s not your fault,” she said. “By some miracle, you’re here now, so wanna come enjoy this food with me?” 

“Wait . . . You mean you didn’t know I was coming?” 

Tink paused. “No . . . I mean, not that I’m not glad you’re here, but I thought it was just going to be a girl thing.” She omitted the part where she decided not to invite him because she didn’t want to draw him into the drama her friends were stirring. 

Terence’s face fell. “Oh . . . Well, I guess I’m just missing why they didn’t show up. Fawn seemed pretty excited about it when she flew by to ask me yesterday. I thought she’d told you.” 

Tink felt her eyes widen. “Fawn came by to ask you?” 

“Yeah . . .” Terence cocked an eyebrow. “I was a little surprised, too, I figured you’d come by if anyone was going to come, but . . .” 

Tink looked confused. 

“You mean she didn’t tell you?” 

“No,” said Tink quietly, unable to process what was going on. “She didn’t.” 

“Well, what are we still standing around for?” asked Terence, flying over to the baskets. “Let’s have ourselves a picnic. This is a great view. Who picked it?” 

“Terence.” Tinker Bell sighed, knowing this wasn’t going to be an easy conversation. “Don’t you think we should, you know, talk?” 

Terence had just plopped a raspberry into his mouth. His eyes widened. “Talk?” he asked with a mouth full of berry. 

Tink tried not to laugh. It took considerable effort. 

After Terence chewed his berry, he sat down next to the basket. Tinker Bell joined him. 

“Yeah, talk,” she said, wanting to approach the subject carefully. “About . . .” She gestured with her hands. 

Terence lit up like a firefly. “Oh! Talk! Yes . . .” His eyes twinkled, and it made Tink nervous. “There’s something I’ve been wanting to ask you-”

“I talked to Silvermist.” Tinker Bell didn’t know why she had to interrupt, why she couldn’t just let Terence say his piece, but she knew whatever it was he was about to say, she didn’t want to hear before having cleared this up. 

Terence looked concerned. “Is she alright?” 

Tinker Bell sighed. He really didn’t understand, did he. “Yes, she’s fine . . . But, she and I were talking, and . . .” She tugged at her bangs. “Apparently you two talked before you came to see me yesterday.” 

“Yeah, we did,” said Terence. “There were some things I needed to get off my chest.” 

“Things . . . Like what? Things . . . about me?” 

“Maybe.” 

“Terence.” 

“Okay, yes. Things about . . . you.” His cheeks started to redden. Tinker Bell felt more comfortable now that he was starting to let his guard down. “I was . . . there was a lot on my mind, and I needed to talk to someone where I knew nothing would happen.” 

Tinker Bell looked at him. 

Terence shook his head, running a hand through his hair. “I was scared, alright?” 

“What were you scared of?” 

“I didn’t know how- I didn’t want- I didn’t want you to think any different of me. I was scared of losing what we had.” 

“I was, too,” said Tink, “until we talked. But it seems Silvermist already said how I felt, didn’t she?” 

“Tink-” 

“Was that the reason you came to see me? Based on somebody else’s word?” 

“No, I-” 

“Would you have come if you hadn’t talked to her?” 

Terence looked upset. “Tink . . . How could you think that little of me?” 

Tinker Bell looked down, feeling hot. “Just answer the question.” 

“She encouraged me to see you. She helped me be brave. I really didn’t know you were going to tell me.” He shook his head before continuing. “And I promise, I didn’t take her word. I wanted to hear it from you first.” 

Tink gazed up at him. “Really?” 

Terence’s eyes met hers. Her heart started beating faster. They were sitting pretty close together, come to think of it. 

“Tink, I swear. I would never lie to you.” She knew that look. He was telling the truth. She was suddenly very aware of how close together they were and how the lamp light lit up his face perfectly, and how handsome he looked under the twinkling stars. How her palms were sweating, and how if she scooted any closer to him their hips would touch. 

“Okay,” she said softly. “I believe you. I only . . .” She cleared her throat. “I only wish I told you sooner.” 

Terence chuckled. “Tink . . .” He reached out and gently grabbed her hand. She allowed him. “We have nothing but time.” 

He leaned towards her, other hand coming up to cup her cheek. She no longer felt startled by his touch. It felt natural, and she wanted more. She looked at him, feeling the weight of his stare, before she found herself leaning in, heart pounding. Seconds later their lips met. 

Tink’s head spun. Her whole world stopped, and right now it was just the two of them kissing, holding on to each other. She moved her arm from dangling uselessly at her side to running delicately through his hair. He seemed to like that, for the grip on her hand tightened and he kissed her harder until she had to pull back and gasp for breath and wonder if this was all just some wild dream she was going to wake up from. 

Her ears were buzzing, and it took Terence rubbing her shoulder for her to realize he was speaking to her. 

“Hm?”

He wore a soft smile. “Will you be my girlfriend?” 

Tinker Bell, still breathless, nodded and grinned. Her head felt hazy from the kiss, but she had never been more sure of anything in her life. “Yes, I will.” She punctuated her words with a kiss, cupping his face. Terence melted into the kiss, hands settling at her sides and rubbing softly. 

He pulled away, and Tink found herself getting lost again in those light blue eyes. So different from hers . . . So much older, wiser, kinder. 

“I’ve never wanted anything so much . . . As to make you mine.” 

Tinker Bell felt like she was floating. “I’m yours,” she said, “if you’ll have me.” 

Terence was about to pull her in for another kiss, but then he stopped. “There’s something else I wanna ask you.” His hands were still very present on her waist. Tinker Bell placed hers on his shoulders. 

“What’s that?” 

“The Summer Ball’s coming up kinda soon, and I kinda need a date.” He smiled slyly at her. 

Tinker Bell laughed, and their foreheads touched. “If you ask nicely.” 

Terence’s head fell back. “You’re killing me.” His hands came up to cup the sides of her face, and he got very close to her. “Would you like to-” 

“I’m messing with you, of course I’ll go with you,” said Tink, giggling. 

Terence brightened. “Wait, really?” 

“Yes, really!” 

He drew her in for a hug. That was when Tinker Bell realized. 

“Wait, Terence . . .” She pulled away to look at him. “My friends . . . They were never coming tonight. They set us up! The food, the blankets, the _lamps_ . . . It was all here, for us.” 

Terence gave her a meaningful look. 

“They really _do_ have my back . . .” Guilt washed over her for having lost her temper with them yesterday. She felt like a bad friend. “But it’s fine . . . All I can do is thank them and apologize. Right?” 

Terence chuckled. “Tink, if they did all this for you, then I think you’re already forgiven.” 

The new couple finished off the remains of the food together, gazed up at the stars, and admired the fireflies buzzing around in the starlit sky. Later that night, after Terence had dropped Tinker Bell off at home, kissed her goodnight, and flown away, she opened her door and found the most shocking sight. 

The water lily was glowing at least twice as bright as it had been earlier. It was enough to cast light throughout her entire house. _Now_ what was going on? She was actually worried she’d have trouble sleeping with it. 

“You are quite the mystery,” she marveled, stroking one of its pink petals. “What is it going to take for me to figure you out?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for reading, and I'll see you on the next one -A 
> 
> Was Silvermist fair in her apology, or should she have stood up for herself more? 
> 
> Has anyone figured out the flower?


	7. 7

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Sit back and enjoy the show

“Miss Bell, could we get ya anything? Water?” 

“You’ve been working all day! You must be tired.” 

Much to Tink’s annoyance, Clank and Bobble hovered closely around her workstation. Her frustration levels were already higher than usual; they were not helping matters any. “I’m alright, thanks.”

Clank and Bobble inched closer, peering over her shoulder on either side. 

The young tinker slowed down her weaving, baffled by her friends’ complete inability to take a hint. 

“Whatcha workin on, Tink?”

“A vase.” Tink put the threads down, resigned to the fact that she wouldn’t get any work done so long as the two of them swarmed around her space like a flock of bees. 

“A vase for what?” 

It was for her flower, which had continued to glow brightly ever since she and Terence had nearly gotten blinded by that lost thing. But she wasn’t about to tell Clank or Bobble that. 

“Have you two worked any more on the Pixie Dust Express?” she asked instead, hoping that would take their mind off it. She would have helped them, but lately she’d been swamped with other projects. 

“Oh, yes! It’s almost finished, Miss Bell,” said Bobble. Then he glanced at Clank. “It’s just . . .”

“We sorta . . .” Tink spun in her chair to face them, and both wore equally guilty expressions. 

“Spit it out.” 

“Lost the blueprints,” they said in unison. 

Tinker Bell sighed. “Really? You know how long it took me to make those?” 

“We’re awfully sorry, Miss Bell-” 

“I thought I had them on my desk, then they just disappeared!” 

Tink put her hands up, silencing the two tinkers. “Guys.” 

“He’s the last one who saw them.” Bobble pointed to Clank. “It was his fault. I tried to tell him-” 

“Hey, way to throw me under the wagon wheel,” Clank said scornfully. 

“Guys-” 

“If you hadn’t lost her blueprints we wouldn’t have-”

“Guys!” 

Clank and Bobble closed their mouths and looked at her guiltily. 

“I will make new ones,” said Tink, now thoroughly exasperated. “I just need some time.” 

“Certainly.” Bobble nodded. 

“Take all the time you need. The Pixie Dust Express can wait.” 

“What’s that about the Pixie Dust Express?” Terence flew into the workshop and landed behind Bobble, causing him to jump. 

“Gracious, Terence! You gave me a right scare.” 

“Sorry, Bobble,” he chuckled sheepishly. Then he smiled. “Hey, Tink, how goes it?” 

“Hey, Terence,” she grinned, a pleasant warmth spreading through her chest at the sight of her boyfriend. 

“I brought you some juice.” Terence held up a flask and handed it to her. “I figured you might be thirsty after working all day.” 

“I’m parched. Thank you so much.” Tink uncapped the flask and gulped its contents greedily, savoring the sweet flavor of the liquid on her tongue. 

“Great, now I’m thirsty,” Clank groaned. “Bobble, ya wanna go grab something to eat?” 

“You read my mind,” said Bobble. “See you two later!” They waved goodbye and headed off. 

“So what have you been doing all day?” asked Terence. “Working on miraculous inventions for all different talents, I’m sure.” 

Tink blushed at the praise, but shook her head. “Not exactly . . .” She stepped back to reveal her handmade vase tailored out of leaves and vines. It had a small opening at the top big enough for the stem of the flower to fit inside, and the petals perched on top would spill over the sides. 

“What’s that?” 

“It’s a vase . . . For the flower we found.” 

“Oh! Wow. It’s really nice.” 

“Thanks! Do you . . . Want to come plant it with me?” Tink asked shyly. 

“Sure, I’d love to.” Terence took her hand and the two fairies flew off to Tinker’s Nook. 

Since both fairies were new to the prospect of their relationship, neither of them were experts in how to properly express themselves. Particularly in affectionate ways. Tinker Bell flashed Terence a soft smile as they flew over Pixie Hollow, in plain daylight where anyone could see them, and Terence squeezed her hand reassuringly. She had gotten so used to being Terence’s friend that all of this was foreign to her, but it felt right. 

She remembered the giddiness scattered across her friends’ faces when she’d finally broken the news about her and Terence, how they’d all rushed to hug her at once and gushed over her. Even Vidia had been cheerful, though more in a smug, told-you-so kind of way. And she wouldn’t forget how Silvermist had pulled her to the side after it was all said and done and told her joyfully, with a bubbly smile breaking her cheekbones, “I just had a feeling. We may have talked, but it was all him. I could see it in his eyes.” 

Tink was still trying to figure out what it was she saw in Terence’s eyes. She’d realized, once she started paying more attention to him, that his eyes would soften whenever they were together, or shine just a little bit brighter. How they would glimmer with kindness and compassion when he asked if she needed anything, or swung by to surprise her. Was that what Silvermist was talking about? 

She looked into those same sky blue eyes that glimmered now and squeezed his hand back. 

Back at her house, Tinker Bell picked up the glowing water lily, fingertips reveling in the warmth its petals radiated. “Here.” She handed it to Terence. “Wanna do the honors?”

She held up the green vase she’d crafted, and Terence carefully placed the flower inside. The petals perked up immediately and a thin layer of pixie dust rippled across the surface like a wave. 

Tinker Bell gasped. “I think it likes it.” 

“It’s beautiful,” Terence said softly, stepping forward and cupping her cheek. Tinker Bell leaned into the touch. “Just like you.” 

He closed the gap between them and pressed his lips against hers. Tinker Bell almost dropped the vase from the sheer gentleness of the gesture. He cupped her face so delicately, and kissed her so tenderly. After a few seconds they broke apart, and Tink sighed contently. 

“You’re so sweet.” She needed a moment to gather herself after that kiss. “I’m gonna go find a spot for this.” She headed toward her dresser. 

“Wait, c’mere.” Terence’s arms circled around her waist, spinning her to the other side of her house. “How about on your window sill?” 

“Hmm.” Tink hummed in contemplation, leaning back into Terence and resting her head on his shoulder. He wasted no time in planting a kiss on her forehead. 

“Every flower needs sunlight,” he said. The solution rested with her quite nicely. She lifted her head and turned around to wrap her arms around his neck. 

“You always have the best ideas.” 

Terence chuckled, eyes glistening with mirth. “Do I?” 

The two found themselves leaning in once again, but before their mouths met a knock on the door startled the pair. Tinker Bell still held onto Terence’s shoulders as a voice sounded through the door. 

“Tinker Bell?” 

“I think it’s Rosetta.” Tinker Bell gave Terence a quick kiss before pulling away to greet her guest. Sure enough, when she pulled open the door the garden fairy stood before her with specks of dirt all over her dress. 

“Wow, Ro, you’ve really had a rough day, haven’t you?” 

“I don’t wanna talk about it.” Rosetta twirled with a strand of her thick, ginger hair. “I dealt with a lot of sprouts, but I’m done for the day. Wanna go get dinner?” 

“Sure, I’m-” 

“Hey, Rosetta !” greeted Terence from inside. Rosetta peered past Tinker Bell to look. Then she returned her gaze to the tinker, smug. “You shoulda told me, shortcake. Was I interruptin somethin?” 

Tinker Bell’s cheeks were instantly coated in red. She shook her head rapidly. “No, no. You’re fine.” 

“Are you sure? Cause I can come back later-” 

“Come check out the vase Tinker Bell made for her flower,” Terence called. At the animated look that bloomed on her face, Tinker Bell had no choice but to step aside and let her in. 

“Ooh, let me see, let me see!” 

“We put it over there-” 

“Oh, it’s magnificent!” Rosetta exclaimed. “I’m so glad it’s glowin again! The window’s the perfect spot for it.” 

“All Terence’s idea,” Tinker Bell said, smiling at the sparrowman. He beamed proudly. 

Rosetta folded her arms and took in the sight of the young couple currently wrapping their arms around each other. 

“So I dunno about you lovebirds, but I’m starvin.” 

Terence and Tinker Bell looked at her, slowly and self-consciously drawing apart. They hadn’t figured out all the boundaries of public affection yet. They didn’t know how much to show in front of their friends, if they should show any at all. Which was why any mention of it greatly embarrassed them. 

“No, please! Don’t stop on my account. But I am leaving for dinner now, with or without you.” 

“Okay, fine, we’re coming,” Tink chuckled, reaching out for Terence’s hand to take. They flew behind Rosetta hand in hand, off to a good, hearty meal. 

____

“I’m just so glad to see she’s being treated so well.” Silvermist leaned back on the sunflower she was perched on. Iridessa and Rosetta sat next to her, while Fawn and Vidia sat on a neighboring sunflower. 

“Isn’t it great?” said Rosetta. “Makes me think of my last boyfriend.” She hummed, wistfully looking up at the sky. 

“He takes such good care of her,” said Iridessa. “They’re perfect for each other.” 

“If any of us deserves to be happy, it’s Tink,” said Fawn. “Sometimes she gets so on edge, and Terence is the only one that knows how to calm her down.” 

“Who said anything about not being happy?” asked Vidia, cocking an eyebrow. “I’m happy being single and with myself, thank you very much.” 

“Oh, Vidia,” Fawn chided, elbowing her gently. “You know that’s not what I meant.”

“She hasn’t mentioned that flower of hers in a while,” speculated Iridessa. “I wonder if it’s started glowing again, or if she’s given up on it.” 

“It has,” said Rosetta. The other fairies gasped, open shock on their faces as they turned to face their friend. 

“Wait, how do you know? Did she tell you?” asked Silvermist. 

“I saw myself, earlier today when I stopped to see Tink. It was glowin brighter than a firefly!” 

Vidia’s eyes widened. 

“She made a little vase for it and everything. I’m glad to see it’s doing so well. I know she was really fond of that thing.” 

“Wait, did she say how long it had been glowing for?” asked Vidia. 

“No, why?”

“Because . . .” Vidia looked down, then back up. Her pale, grey eyes narrowed in thought. “Tink told me that while they were at the shop, as soon as they found the flower, it started glowing.” 

“Okay . . .” Silvermist looked skeptical. “And?”

“When Terence said that they could take it with them and try magic on it.” 

“What does that have to do with it glowin?” asked Rosetta. 

“Just hear me out,” said Vidia. “Tink said that they started arguing over whether the flower was cursed with dark magic, then Terence said something to make her mad and it went out.” 

Fawn and Iridessa gasped. Rosetta raised an eyebrow, and Silvermist’s face remained calculating and curious. 

“She told you this?” asked Iridessa. 

“Every word.” 

“Did she say anything else?” 

“She said that when Terence eventually caved and decided they could take the flower, it lit up again.” 

Fawn’s eyes widened. “You don’t mean . . .” 

Recognition flashed on Rosetta’s face. “Oh, of course!” 

“What? What is it?” asked Silvermist. Then she gasped. “Wait a minute . . . When Tink had us all over that one day, she was  _ talking about Terence _ when the flower lit up.” 

Rosetta gasped.  _ “You’re right.”  _

Vidia snapped her fingers and pointed at her. “Exactly.” 

“I don’t believe this,” said Iridessa faintly. “They have a magic flower powered by-”

“Love.” Rosetta placed her hands over her chest. “It’s so romantic.” 

“We have to tell them,” said Fawn excitedly. 

“Where’s the fun in that?” asked Vidia. “Let them figure it out.” 

“Because they figured out their feelings for each other so fast?” Fawn challenged. “We’ve just gotten past the likes stage. How long is it going to take them to realize they’re in love?” 

Vidia’s expression flattened. “Touche. But I still think we should just let them work it out for themselves.” 

“Vidia’s right,” said Silvermist. “That’s their journey to make, not ours.” 

“Tinker Bell and Terence, in love,” Iridessa gushed, still in a trance. “It’s like fate!” 

“That sure is one special flower,” said Rosetta. 

“Say,” said Fawn. “Where did she say she got it from again?” 

_____

Tinker Bell flew to the dust depot, heart hammering excitedly in her chest. She hadn’t seen Terence all day and was starting to miss him, as pathetic as that may have sounded to an outsider’s ears. Lately she had been enjoying the blonde’s company even more than she already had. 

When she reached her destination, she landed and smoothed out her flyaways as best as she could. But before she could reach the depot, she heard a series of voices coming from the pixie dust pool. 

“I wonder if he’s asked her to the ball yet,” said a fairy she recognized as Drew. Tink quickly darted behind a tree branch to hide. 

“Probably not,” mused a sparrowman: Stone. “Terence doesn’t have the wings.” 

Tinker Bell reeled back in shock at the nasty comment toward her boyfriend. But she held herself back from launching herself at the fairies. She needed to hear more. 

“Pretty sure I know the  _ real _ reason he’s taking her to the ball,” said another sparrowman snidely: Flint. This rewarded him with mean laughter from the entire group. 

Tinker Bell felt her cheeks flush in shame. She knew that boys talked, but if Flint was saying what she thought he was saying, then Terence had some serious explaining to do. 

“You may be right,” said Drew. “You should’ve seen the look on his face when I told him I’d bet all my pixie dust he wouldn’t ask her by the end of last week.” 

Tinker Bell’s brows furrowed in confusion. Now they were placing bets on her? 

“I told him I’d take all his shifts for a month if he got in the sack with her by the end of this week,” said another sparrowman named Bolt, which was followed by even louder laughter. 

Tinker Bell gasped, chest lurching as her hands flew over her mouth and her eyes widened in horror. So  _ these _ were the kinds of things Terence talked about with his friends? Was that how he really saw her? She felt deeply humiliated. 

Feeling tears well in her eyes, she decided she couldn’t bear to hear another word and flew behind her hiding spot to go home. Her cheeks were reddened with shame, and she hung her head down low to avoid being seen. 

“Tink?” It was Drew. 

It seemed her luck had worn thin. Refusing to give her the satisfaction of even a glance, Tink tilted her head up high and flew away quickly, ignoring Drew’s second call of her name. She sped all the way home, allowing only a single tear to fall down her cheek before she breathed shakily and composed herself. She stuck her tongue to the roof of her mouth as hard as she could, a trick she’d learned to keep from crying. She plopped down on her bed, feeling dejected. That was when she noticed it. 

Her flower was no longer glowing. 

It was back to the dull and lifeless grey it had been before. Frustrated beyond belief, and hurt at what she’d witnessed, Tink buried her head in her hands and did not move for a long, long time. 

___

Terence flew toward Tinker’s Nook at full speed, eager to get his idea for Tink’s Pixie Dust Express on paper. He couldn’t wait until she heard it. 

He raised a fist and lightly knocked on the door, in the special way that only he did so she knew it was him. 

The door swung open to reveal a livid Tinker Bell with eyes narrowed coldly at him, piercing him with a sweltering glare. 

“Whoa . . .” Terence faltered, taking a step back. “Tink, what’s going on?” 

“Wouldn’t you like to know,” she said scathingly. 

“Huh?” Terence’s heart skipped a beat. Tinker Bell was clearly very angry with him, and he did not know why. 

“I heard your friends at the dust depot talking about me,” Tink said icily, placing her hands on her narrow hips. 

Terence felt a surge of anxiety. His friends had recently been saying some unkind, vulgar things about him and Tink, all of which he’d ignored. They were unrepeatable things, things he would never imagine saying to Tink if someone put a knife to his throat. If she had  _ heard _ any of that . . . 

“What were they saying?”

“Terence, don’t play dumb.” She furrowed her brows at him. 

“Play dumb? What are you- I’m not!” 

“The bet? About getting me in the sack? How Bolt would take all your shifts if it happened? Any of that ringing a bell?”

Terence’s eyes widened and he felt his chest go cold. He began rapidly shaking his head no. 

“Oh, don’t even deny it, I  _ heard _ them talking about it! I can’t believe you.” 

“Tink, you don’t think I actually had anything to do with those bets, do you?” Terence asked incredulously, heart jackhammering heavily. 

“I don’t know what to believe,” Tink said softly. Terence looked up at her, dismay washing away. All he wanted to do was hold her now, but he refrained. His girlfriend was choosing the word of his “friends” over his own, and it stung like salt on an open wound. 

“Tink-” 

“Don’t, Terence. Just don’t.” Tinker Bell backed away from him. Terence gripped his own arm to keep from reaching out for her. This was all a big misunderstanding, if he could only just  _ explain- _

“I don’t want to see you.” She said it so quietly, he almost didn’t hear her. 

“Wait . . .  _ What?” _

Tinker Bell drew a deep breath, then looked up at him, scornful. “I said I don’t want to see you.” 

“Tinker Bell, please, I promise, I wanted nothing to do with what they were saying-” 

“And why were they saying it?” 

Terence gaped at her. He realized he didn’t have a suitable answer. 

“I-” 

“Just go.” Tinker Bell began to close the door, shutting him out. 

“Wait, Tink, I-” 

Slam. 

Terence placed a hand up to the door, trembling in shock. “No . .” he whispered. “Tink, please!” He knocked on the door again, feeling frantic. He knew it wasn’t the smartest idea but he didn’t care. 

“Go away!” came her muffled, enraged voice. 

Terence surrendered with a sigh, slowly lowering his hand. In utter defeat, he flew away. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> . . . You didn't think I was gonna keep things all happy go lucky, did you?   
> -A


	8. 8

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tink overhears another incriminating conversation, only this time it's going to cost her double

“Let’s see.” Terence picked up a pebble and gripped it tightly in his fist, casting it off to the stream with a couple skips. “I bring her food, help her reorganize her home, give her ideas for the Pixie Dust Express . . .” He selected another pebble, simmering with rage. “And she doesn’t even say thank you!” 

The pebble skipped four times, his personal best, though he didn’t feel accomplished by the feat. He sat with his shoulders slumped on a mossy rock, contemplating with only the nature to keep him company. “What did I do wrong?” he asked himself. 

The sound of another fairy flying startled him, and he cursed. Right when he thought he could finally be alone after another day of ruthless taunting from his coworkers . . . 

“Fancy seeing you here.” Silvermist glid before him wearing a smile, though it disappeared when she examined his sullen form. 

“Hi,” Terence said quietly, relieved it was only her. 

“What’s wrong?” Silvermist flew to the rock and took a seat next to him. 

“Nothing’s wrong,” Terence defended sharply, feeling too embarrassed to admit the problem. “I’m fine, I’m great, actually. Why do you ask?”

Silvermist looked taken aback. 

Guilt coiled tightly around his chest. He sighed, shaking his head. “No, I’m sorry, that was- I’m-” He ran a distressed hand through his ash blonde hair. “Look, something happened. Tink and I got in a fight.” 

Her almond brown eyes widened. “This early? I have to admit, we didn’t think the fighting stage would start for another couple weeks.” 

“I didn’t think so, either, but Tink, she heard my friends . . . If I can even call them my friends . . .” 

“What? What did they say?”

Terence stared down at the rock, unable to make eye contact with her. “They said they’d take my shifts at the depot for a month if I got in the sack with her.” 

Silvermist gasped. “Oh, that’s terrible! How could they say that?”

“That’s just how they are, they always goof around and make dirty jokes about girls,” said Terence. “But they took it too far with Tink.” 

“So what happened?” 

“She thinks I’m the one who placed the bet.” 

“No . . .” An anguished Silvermist toyed with her sleek, black hair. “She has to know that isn’t true.” 

“I tried to tell her. But she didn’t listen.” 

“She will,” said Silvermist. “Just give her some time to cool off.”

“It’s Tink,” Terence deadpanned. “There is no cooling off.” 

Silvermist chuckled. “Sure there is. With you, I can promise she’ll come around soon. Whose word means more to her? Some random dust keeper fairies she hardly knows, or yours?” 

“I thought mine,” Terence said hotly, folding his arms across his chest. “But she showed me otherwise.” 

“She’s upset,” Silvermist gently reminded him. “And she’s taking it out on you. She’s gotta be embarrassed; she probably feels like she can’t even show her face to you right now after what they said.” 

“I didn’t think about it like that,” Terence admitted. “But, she has to know I don’t see her that way!”

“Deep down, I think she does,” said Silvermist. “But she exploded and reacted in the heat of the moment because that’s what she does. Her thoughts were consuming her. She’ll figure it out.” 

“Well, it’s not okay,” argued Terence. “She doesn’t understand the effect she has on others. How her actions hurt us.” 

“Just give her some space.” 

“Oh, I’ll give her all the space she needs!” Terence angrily skipped another stone in the stream. “This time, she’s going to come to me.”

Silvermist sighed. “You two will work it out. Now, about your coworkers . . . I can’t believe they had the nerve to say that stuff. They’re no friends of yours.” 

Terence shook his head. “They’re my friends, at the end of the day . . . They’re just really immature sometimes. I kinda have to put up with them, you know?” 

“If those were your real friends, they wouldn’t be saying things like that, behind your back or to your face,” Silvermist said softly. 

“Some friends I have,” he mused. “Too bad I only have to put up with them, oh I don’t know, every day of my life.” 

“Terence.” Silvermist looked sadly at him, openly frowning. “It sounds like you need to stick up for yourself. Tell them to stop talking about you and Tinker Bell like that. Otherwise, it’s never gonna go away.” 

“They don’t care,” Terence said, shaking his head disdainfully. “It’s all just a big game to them. God forbid they grow a conscience and grow up. Besides, it wouldn’t do them any good. They’d just latch onto some new fairies next week.” 

“Is Tink important to you?” 

The question surprised him. 

“Yes, of course she is, but-” 

“Then you need to do this.” 

Terence sighed heavily. “Alright. But if it doesn’t go well, then don’t say I didn’t warn you.” 

___ 

Nearly a week passed, and Terence and Tinker Bell still hadn’t spoken to each other. Terence had taken Silvermist’s advice, keeping his distance and allowing her time to cool off. But it seemed she was still hot as a teakettle, for she hadn’t paid him a single visit. Each day that passed wore his patience down thinner. He could not fathom the reality of their relationship ending over something so trivial. 

Hence why his eyes rolled into the back of his head when Drew began talking to him at the depot. He wasn’t sure how much more of their teasing he could take. 

“So, Terence . . .” Drew tied up green bags of dust and tossed them into the rotating shelves. 

Terence put down the leaf he was writing on. “Hmm?” 

“Tinker Bell hasn’t come by to see you in a while. Is everything okay?” 

Terence summoned his best smile. 

“Everything’s fine.” 

“Well, uh, I’m only asking because . . . Last week I saw her flying outta here. She looked pretty upset.” 

“Did she?” Terence feigned innocent, twirling with his writing utensil. 

“I just thought you should know.” Drew sounded uncomfortable. “Do you have any idea why she was so upset?” 

“I’m . . . Not sure.” Terence didn’t feel like divulging into his personal business with Drew. 

“Wasn’t that after our conversation about the ball?” chuckled Flint. “It would make sense, because I saw her flying away, too. She was _mad_. Her face was all red and everything.” 

Terence furrowed his brows. “Hey-” 

“Don’t get your wings in a twist, Terence, we didn’t say anything bad about her. We were only talking about the bet we tried to make about the ball. You know, where’d she’d sleep with you before it even happened.” 

Vexed and tired of playing nice, he narrowed his eyes and pointed a finger at the dust keeper. “Don’t talk about her that way.” 

A mortified Drew covered her mouth. “You don’t think she . . . _heard_ us?” 

“Well, we weren’t being very quiet about it,” said Stone. The other boys laughed in response. Terence felt his cheeks redden in humiliation. 

“Yes, Drew,” he seethed, balling his hands into tight fists. “As a matter of fact she _did_ hear you. Every word.” 

The other fairies froze, eyes widening in shock. 

“Terence . . .” Drew reached out for him, but Terence flinched away. “We didn’t-” 

“Know? Yeah, I got that much,” he said savagely. “And now, thanks to you guys and your inability to keep your foul mouths shut, it’s over.” 

“What?” Drew exclaimed. 

“You were together?” Stone asked dumbly. 

Terence closed his eyes. 

“Terence, you know we didn’t actually mean that stuff,” said Bolt hesitantly. “We were just-” 

“Kidding?” Terence shot him an icy glare. “Try telling her that. Oh, wait, you can’t. Because she won’t listen to me, or anyone associated with me, ever again!” He slammed down his writing utensil on top of the leaf. “And that’s why most people have the common sense not to say mean things about someone behind their back. But that didn’t stop you guys from making fun of my girlfriend, did it?” 

“Oh, don’t be so dramatic,” Bolt chastised. “If Tink’s like every other girl we know, she’ll forget about it in fifteen minutes.” 

“It’s been a week.” Terence’s eyes narrowed dangerously. “And that’s the thing about her; she’s _not_ like every other girl I know. That’s why I like her.” 

Bolt looked to Stone and Flint for help, but they only offered a shrug of their shoulders. Bolt was on his own. 

“Uh . . .” Bolt cleared his throat. “Well, you know we weren’t being serious. She should’ve listened to you. If she didn’t, that’s her problem.” 

Terence’s eyebrows shot to his hairline. _“Her_ problem? She’s not the one trying to figure out how to get those disgusting comments out of her head! How to get her to see that I had nothing to do with this.” 

“Terence, seriously,” said Drew. “Calm down. She may be mad right now, but if you approach her in a calm and collected manner and just talk to her, she’ll listen.” 

“Calm and collected . . .” Flabbergasted, Terence threw his hands up in surrender. “Wow, what a great idea, Drew,” he applauded, tone dripping with venomous sarcasm. “Now, why didn’t I think of that?” 

Drew glared at him. “I’m trying to help you. You don’t have to be nasty.” 

“Nasty? I’m not the one making comments about only being with her to get her in my bed.” Terence pointed a finger at Drew. “I’m pretty sure that was you.” 

He cast them a vicious glare and turned around to leave, but was stopped by Bolt who reached out and grabbed his arm. 

“Don’t touch me,” he growled, reeling back from the contact. Bolt’s eyes widened with worry. 

“We didn’t know it was this bad, Terence, honest,” Flint insisted. “We’ll fix this, we’ll-” 

“You’ll fix this?” Terence guffawed in disbelief. “I’d like to see you try. She wouldn’t believe you for a second even if you were being sincere.” He stormed away without another word. 

He decided to work somewhere quieter, further down the desk away from all the obnoxious commotion of the guys. 

Midnight sat with her feet kicked up on the desk, reading a book with spectacles perched atop her nose. Her normally pulled back hair swept neatly down, around her shoulders, framing her tanned face. When she heard Terence, she lowered her book and removed her spectacles. 

“Terence,” she said. “How are you doing? I couldn’t help but overhear-”

“That me and Tink are over? Yeah, looks like everybody knows now.” Terence sank into a chair, slouching over and putting his head in his hands. 

“You don’t look like you’re having a very good day,” observed Midnight unhelpfully.

“I’m not,” Terence replied, muffled. He looked up at the fairy, who peered down at him in concern. “What am I gonna do? I can’t lose her over this.” 

“It sounds to me like she jumped to conclusions too quickly,” said Midnight. “And that she’s believing what she wants to believe instead of listening to you. Now, why would she do that, you might ask? A couple reasons.” 

Midnight held up a finger. “One. Fairies like her always like to be right, even if it costs them.” 

Terence raised a questioning eyebrow. Surely Tinker Bell wouldn’t want to be right about something like this? 

“And two.” Midnight held up a second finger. “She was looking for a reason to end it.” 

This caught Terence by surprise. 

“What do you mean?” he asked cautiously. 

“I mean, maybe for whatever reason she was scared, or decided she just didn’t like you that way anymore.” Midnight toyed with her short, black hair. “And she didn’t want to hurt your feelings, so instead of being honest with you she used the conversation she overheard as an excuse to end things.” 

That couldn’t be true. Tinker Bell had been nothing but kind and sweet with him, showing every sign that she liked him. Terence had treasured all their little moments together. Hearing otherwise from Midnight right now made him uneasy. Fear gripped him and stirred inside him. 

“That seems a little excessive,” he said. “Tink wouldn’t go that far. She doesn’t lie like that.” He hoped he sounded as convincing as he wanted himself to be. 

“You’d be surprised what fairies will do when they feel trapped,” Midnight said lightly. 

“Trapped . . .” Terence wrung his fingers tightly. “I would never want her to feel that way, Midnight, I never-” 

“Of _course_ you didn’t,” Midnight said gently, shaking her head fondly at him. “You never mean to, Terence. These things just happen. And it’s not your fault you got caught in the crossfires of someone who wasn’t ready to be with you.” She fiddled with the pages of her book, flipping it back and forth. 

“She _has_ been avoiding me,” Terence conceded. “And she was so ready to believe them over me . . .” 

Midnight looked at him pointedly. 

“But I can’t know for sure until I talk to her.” 

Midnight sighed, setting the book down. “How did things go last time you tried talking to her?” 

Terence flushed. “Not well.” 

“Exactly.” 

Terence sighed. “I’m so confused . . . I don’t understand why she won’t just _listen.”_

“Her actions tell me she never cared very much to begin with.” Midnight put her spectacles back in their little case. 

Terence felt his chest tighten. The idea of Tinker Bell not caring about him sliced deep through his side like a dagger. 

“But you seem to care way too much of what she thinks of you,” Midnight said silkily, standing from her chair and pacing around. “Which I have to admit, I don’t understand. I could never let somebody else have control over me like that.” 

“She doesn’t control me,” Terence argued. “She’s just . . . very expressive.” 

“You can be expressive and still remember to consider someone’s feelings other than your own.” 

“I was so excited to go to the ball with her, too,” he said glumly. “Now I don’t think it’s gonna happen.” 

Midnight perked up. “Who says you still aren’t going?” 

Terence cocked a brow. “What do you mean?” 

The tall fairy chuckled. “Don’t be silly, Terence. Don’t let Tinker Bell ruin the ball for you. Find someone else to go with. Someone who actually cares about you. Let her see what she’s missing out on.” 

Terence’s heart skipped a beat. He knew it was wrong, but a part of him was tempted by the idea of making her jealous, though he would never be caught dead admitting it aloud. His eyebrows lifted in a silent gesture for her to go on. 

“If she saw you there with someone else, it would make her feel awful for all the terrible things she said to you. You would get even with her, and you would be with someone who actually deserved all your kindness.” 

The other side of Terence that had a conscience cringed at the thought of intentionally hurting Tink, however appealing the jealousy plan may have been. 

“I don’t know . . . I’m not sure it’s a good idea.” 

“You honestly don’t think she’s already rounded up several other sparrowmen as replacements by now?” Midnight put her hands on her hips as her tone grew firmer. 

Terence’s eyes widened. “I don’t-”

“Fairies like her don’t wait around for an apology,” said Midnight. “They step up the stakes. Betrayal is in their nature.” 

Terence stood up from his seat so he was eye level with her. “What are you saying?” 

“Tinker Bell may have wanted to let you down easy, but her games are far from over.” 

Terence shook his head. “No,” he insisted. “She was just . . . It was just a big misunderstanding. She thinks something about me, that isn’t true, and-” 

“Are you really gonna wait around and let her hurt you more?” Midnight asked assertively. “Or are you going to arm up and defend yourself?” She took a step closer to the sparrowman. “If it were me, I wouldn’t even give her the chance.” 

____

Silvermist knocked on Tinker Bell’s door, hoping she was home. Her conversation with Terence had been eating her alive, and she’d waited long enough for them to figure things out on their own. It was time for an intervention. 

After a few moments of waiting, Tinker Bell opened the door with a dark scowl. “What?” she barked. 

Silvernist stood silently, feeling awkward. Once Tinker Bell recognized her guest, her face softened and she took a step back. 

“S-Sorry,” she said. “I’m- I was . . . Nevermind. Come on in.” 

Tinker Bell allowed her to come in, lowering her head in shame at the way she’d just coldly greeted her friend. 

Silvermist caught sight of Tinker Bell’s water lily sitting in its vase on the window sill. All its color and glow had drained out. She chose not to speak on it, instead focusing on the fairy before her with dark creases under her tired eyes and a withdrawn posture. Her glow was also dimmed. 

“Hey . . .” She stepped closer to the tinker, frowning with concern. “Are you alright?” 

Tinker Bell nodded quickly, folding her arms across her chest. “Yeah, I’m fine,” she responded, voice high-pitched. “Everything’s fine.” She stifled a yawn, blinking her eyes heavily. 

“Tink . . .” Silvermist saw her friend sway from the force of the yawn. She clearly had not been getting enough sleep, judging by the fact that she was hardly able to stand on her own two feet. “Come on, let’s sit down.” Silvermist put an arm behind her back and guided her. 

With a resigned sigh Tink surrendered and allowed herself to be led. They took a seat on her bed, Silvermist rubbing soothing circles on her back. Tinker Bell released a shuddering breath, relaxing from the contact. 

“Talk to me,” Silvermist said gently. “What’s going on?” 

"Nothing's going on."

Silvermist lifted an eyebrow. "I don't think I believe that."

"Well, believe it." Tink kicked her legs back and forth. She tugged on her bangs, hard. "Because everything is fine. You don't need to keep asking all the time. Just because Terence and I broke up doesn't mean my entire life fell apart."

She twirled with her bangs again, roughly pulling the hair.

"Hey, stop that." Silvermist grabbed Tink's wrist and lowered her hand away from her hair. Tink just shook her head, stuffing her hands between her legs.

"I didn't ask if everything was fine," said Silvermist, letting go of her. "I asked what was going on. Did something else happen, or are you just feeling upset about all this?"

"No. I just haven't been sleeping well the past few nights."

"I have some herbal tea you can brew at night before you go to bed."

Tink looked at her, withdrawing her hands from her legs and setting them softly on the bed.

"That sounds really nice, actually."

Silvermist smiled. "I'll bring some by later this week. Or tonight, if you'll be around."

"You can come tonight," said Tink. "I'm going to bed early anyway, so that would be perfect."

Silvermist nodded. She focused on a spot on the wall thoughtfully.

"Have you thought about going and talking to Terence?"

Tink tensed up, shoulders stiffening. Her lips set in a hard frown.

"No, I haven't. I'm not in the wrong, here."

"I didn't say you were." Silvermist shook her head. "I just think it might really clear some things up for you guys if you talk."

"I am _certainly_ not going to be the one to start that conversation." Tink folded her arms across her chest. "I'm not going to see him."

Silvermist's gaze softened. "You know, just because someone does something wrong doesn't mean you can't do something else to help make it right."

"Why should I? At this point, I doubt he'll ever explain himself so it doesn't even matter."

Silvermist furrowed her brows. "A lot of the times in misunderstandings, both fairies feel like the other is in the wrong. Terence probably feels like you're the one who needs to speak up."

"I shouldn't _have_ to!" Tink felt rather than heard the words. They reverberated deep in her chest.

"One of you has to take the first step forward."

"And why does it have to be me?"

"You guys won't even look at each other. Do you want it to stay like that forever?"

"I have absolutely no problem with that."

Silvermist sighed.

"Just because you go see him doesn't mean you have to be the one to apologize."

"You think I should go see him, and just _wait_ for him to apologize?"

"I think he may do it on his own if he sees you still care," said Silvermist. "Just showing up will tell him a lot."

Tink frowned. Her chest felt heavy, hearing those words. But she would not admit so. To anybody.

"I feel incredibly foolish, being the one to do this."

"You haven't heard his side of the story," said Silvermist. "There are things he may say that will completely change your perspective of the situation. Maybe you should show him a little compassion."

"Hearing how he feels about it won't change anything." Tink spoke coldly, wringing her hands together in hardened concentration.

"He thinks you don't care anymore." Her quiet words echoed loudly in Tink's ears. "And I know you still do."

She looked into her eyes.

They spoke sincerity. They spoke truth.

Tink unclenched her hands. "Maybe I will go see him."

Silvermist brightened. "Okay. That's a step in the right direction. So you'll think about it, then?"

"I'll think about it."

"He won't act unkindly, toward you. If that's what you're worried about."

"That's not what I'm worried about."

"Then what are you worried about?"

"I'm not worried, Silvermist." Tink ran a hand through her hair. "I'm embarrassed. Why would he be so nice to me, for so long, just to turn around and say those things about me to his friends? Is that all he saw me as?"

"Tink." Silvermist looked forlorn. "He doesn't see you that way. Believe me when I say that."

"I thought our relationship was more than that, I thought _we_ were more than that."

"This is why you need to talk to him," said Silvermist.

"I could," said Tink, in mild consideration, as though she were deciding whether she wanted to tinker indoors or outdoors for her afternoon shift. "Maybe there is something I don't know."

"I think you'll feel better if you do."

Tink had a tightness in her chest that would not recede. The idea of seeing him, as much as she hated to admit it, calmed her. And released just a little bit of that tightness.

"But I don't want you to feel like you have to," Silvermist quickly added. "It is your choice."

Tink cast her eyes down to the cream carpet. "Okay . . . Fine. I'll go." She looked back up at Silvermist. "But I'm not about to go begging on my knees for him. I'm not a lost princess."

Silvermist's smile reached her ears. "I'll go with you if you want."

"You will?"

She nodded. "Of course."

Tink smiled. "Thanks, Sil. You're a really good friend."

Silvermist glanced outside. "You know, I'm pretty sure he's on inventory right now if we want to-"

"Now?" she all but squeaked.

Silvermist studied her. "Yes, now. Was there another time that worked better for you?"

Tink's brows furrowed at the unwanted sarcasm.

"Nope." Her voice came out high pitched. "Today's perfect, actually. Today is _fantastic."_ She stood up and quickly smothered her hands over her messy hair to pat it down as much as she could. She was unsuccessful. She groaned, feeling highly frustrated that her efforts were going to waste.

Silvermist joined her on her feet. "Tink-"

"It would be nice if my hair decided to _listen_ to me for a change."

Silvermist frowned. "I wasn't trying to force you into going today. If you aren't ready, I respect that."

Tink bit her lip. She tried not to think about face she saw at night when she thrashed in her sheets unable to sleep.

"No," she said. "We'll go. I want to do this."

"Okay."

It was for her tired eyes, she told herself. It was for her tired eyes.

_____

She scanned her surroundings, eyes landing on several dust keeper fairies busy at work, but none of them were blonde or had an acorn cap. Then, she heard a familiar voice from further down. 

“This is gonna sound crazy, but just hear me out.” 

_Midnight._

Tinker Bell inched closer, and gasped quietly when she saw the fairy conversing with none other than Terence. She hid behind a large wooden pole conveniently located near the desk to listen. She realized eavesdropping was quickly becoming a bad habit of hers, but she couldn’t help herself. 

“What?” 

The sound of Terence’s voice traveled to her ears, making her ache. 

“I . . .” Midnight trailed off. Tink couldn’t see her, so she whipped around the pole to take a peek. She and Terence stood facing each other. “Nevermind, it’s nothing.” She turned away from him bashfully. 

“No, come on ! Don’t be like that. Tell me.” Terence walked to face her, getting rather close to her. Jealousy coursed through Tinker Bell’s veins swift as a river. 

Midnight took a deep breath and straightened her posture. “Well . . . Alright.” She toyed with her jet black hair. “I know we haven’t been friends for very long. And I know you’re really torn up over Tinker Bell.” She plopped down into her chair, and Terence sat in his. 

“But, um . . . I was wondering . . .” She tapped her foot nervously on the ground. “Would you possibly want to go to the ball . . . With me?” 

Tink’s heart dropped like a falling maple seed. She gasped, shaking her head frantically in utter disbelief at what she was hearing. 

A long moment of silence followed her question. 

“Wow,” was all Terence said, though not unkindly. “I, um . . .” 

That did it. Tink’s glow reddened rapidly as she flew out of the depot as fast as her wings could carry her. 

She vanished past Silvermist in a flash of vermillion, not even slowing down. “Tink?” Silvermist looked up to see her friend flying away with her glow an angry scarlet. “Tink! Wait!” 

Silvermist took off at full speed after her friend, but the fairy refused to slow down. 

“Tinker Bell, _stop!”_

Tink hovered in the air, turning around to face Silvermist with a withering look. Her glow dimmed to a blood orange. 

_“What?”_

“Did you-Did you talk to him?” 

Tinker Bell drew into herself, wings drooping down her back. Her glow returned to its normal color, and she hung her head. “It’s over,” she said hoarsely. 

“Wait, what did he say?” Silvermist flew towards her, but Tink backed away. Guilt flooded inside her once again. She could have expected that Terence was going to find someone new after the way she treated him . . . But this soon? And _Midnight?_ Her chest ached with pain. She couldn’t tell Silvermist. 

“Tink-” 

“Just forget it,” she scowled. She sped away into the sunlight sky, unable to stand the sight of her friend’s worried face a second longer. 

Silvermist watched her go, experiencing an unpleasant mix of concern and confusion. She decided if she was going to get to the bottom of this, she’d need some backup. 

____

Tinker Bell laid back on her bed, staring dully up at the ceiling. Her sapphire eyes showed no sign of life, and her lips were turned down in a frown. She didn’t move when she heard a knock at the door. 

“Tink!” 

She closed her eyes in exasperation, sinking down further into the bed if that were possible. 

“Tink, open up!” 

Nothing. 

To Tink’s dismay her door swung open, and in flew Iridessa, Silvermist, Rosetta, and Fawn, all their faces clouded with concern. Their frowns deepened at the sight of their friend lying unmoving on her bed. 

Fawn reached her first. “Oh, Tink . . .” She stood over her and extended her arm out. Tink ignored her. Fawn huffed. “Tink, come on.” She reached down and pulled her into a sitting position. “There you go.” 

“What’s wrong, sweetpea?” Rosetta asked kindly, taking a seat next to her. 

“Nothing’s _wrong,”_ Tink growled, crossing her arms stubbornly. “And I’d appreciate it if you all stopped asking.” 

Rosetta and Silvermist exchanged a glance. “It’s Terence, isn’t it.” 

“What did he do to you?” inquired Iridessa, barring her fists protectively. “Did he hurt you?” 

Tinker Bell sighed heavily, running her hands through her hair. “No, he didn’t. But he’s . . .” She looked down, then back up. 

“What?” pressed Iridessa. 

Tink bit her wobbling lip, willing herself not to cry. 

“You need to talk to us,” Silvermist said softly. “Please tell us what happened.” 

Tinker Bell sighed, accepting that her friends were not going to quit. She said as unemotionally as she could, “He’s taking someone else to the ball.” 

The four fairies gasped, eyes wide as saucers. 

“No he isn’t!” exclaimed Rosetta. 

“I don’t believe it,” said Fawn. 

“Are you sure?” asked Silvermist. 

Tink looked at her. “Sure as you are about the rain.” She hugged her arms tighter across her chest. “So much for doing the right thing,” she scoffed. 

“Tink . . .” Silvermist looked at her, sorrowful. 

“I was ready to move past the bets. But this just sealed my suspicion. Terence doesn’t care who he takes to the ball, as long as he gets her in his bed. I was wrong about him.” Her hands were balled tightly into fists, and her nails scraped the surface of her flesh, leaving crescent moon indents. 

“Honey . . .” Rosetta reached out and placed a hand on her shoulder. Tink allowed the contact. “Terence does not feel that way about you. I know that for a fact.” 

“How can you be so sure?” Tink asked, barely above a whisper.

“Because-” 

“Because I’ve never seen him happier than when he’s with you,” said Fawn. 

“Yeah, he always lights up like a firefly whenever he’s around you!” exclaimed Iridessa eagerly. “We’ve all seen it.” 

That put a small smile on Tink’s face in spite of herself. However, it was promptly erased with the harsh reminder of reality. 

“Well, it doesn’t matter now,” she said darkly. “It’s too late.” 

“Don’t say that,” pleaded Rosetta.

“Well, it’s true. He’s taking someone else. I think I need to move on.” 

“Who’s he taking?” asked Iridessa. 

Tink focused on the floor, embarrassment seeping into her bones. She answered with lightly suppressed rage, “Midnight.” 

Gasps of horror trailed in her wake, followed by a heavy silence. Fawn’s eyes narrowed to slits and her lip curled in disgust. _“No.”_

“It can’t be,” gasped Silvermist. Her hands flew over her mouth. 

“Of all the fairies, why _her?”_ questioned Rosetta crossly. 

“Your guess is as good as mine,” Tink said, vision blurring with unshed tears. She swallowed thickly. 

“I can’t believe this.” Silvermist shook her head. Tinker Bell looked at her and furrowed her brow. 

“Well, believe it. When I heard them talking, I had to get out of there. Because he’s taking her, and I only have myself to blame.” 

“So you didn’t even get the chance to talk to him?” 

Tinker Bell shook her head. 

“Oh, no . . .”

“Wait, if you didn’t talk to him, then how do you know all this?” asked Iridessa.

“I sorta . . . Eavesdropped.” 

“Sugar, you gotta stop doing that,” Rosetta chastised. “Especially after what happened last time.” 

“That conniving little fairy,” snarled Fawn, seething. “She is _horrible_ , Tink. You cannot let him go to the ball with her!” 

“The nerve of him to even ask her,” scowled Rosetta. “I can’t believe he would do that to you.” 

“Actually, she asked him,” Tink corrected. 

“Oh.” 

“Well, that makes a little more sense,” said Silvermist thoughtfully. “I truly couldn’t believe he’d do something like that after seeing how devastated he was after your fight.” 

“He was?” Tink asked, her look softening. 

“Yes.” Silvermist fiddled with her hair. 

Tink was gripped with remorse. “I didn’t know . . .” Then her expression hardened. “But there’s nothing I can do about it now.” 

Rosetta scoffed. “Do you honestly think he’d rather go with _Midnight_ than you? You need to talk to him.” 

“Wait, you did hear him say yes to Midnight, right?” Iridessa asked seriously. 

Tinker Bell froze. Jealousy had overridden her rationality, and she’d flown away before she’d heard his answer. But after everything she’d put him through, she was pretty sure she knew. 

“Yes.” 

Her friends stirred restlessly, cursing under their breath and glowering. “All men are the same,” decided Iridessa. 

“There has to be more to the story,” said Silvermist. “Why would he want to go with her?” 

Tinker Bell looked up at them, forlorn. 

“Because she’s smart, funny, level-headed, and . . .” She sighed, wrapping her arms around herself insecurely. “Beautiful.” 

Her speech was followed by a chorus of protests. 

“But you’re all of those things, too,” Iridessa insisted. “ . . . Most of those things.” 

“How about we take you out for a fly. Get you some fresh air,” Fawn offered. 

Tink put her hands up to halt their comments. “Guys . . . Actually, I kinda wanna be alone right now.” 

They backed up, worry growing on their faces. 

“Please,” said Tinker Bell, once again feeling close to tears. She could not allow herself to be weak in front of them. 

“Okay . . .” Iridessa cast a melancholy gaze at her deadened flower, then turned around to head out. She muttered various, venomous insults about Terence under her breath. 

“Alright, love. But we’re all here for you.” Rosetta rose from the bed. 

“If you need anything, come get one of us, okay?” Silvermist crouched over her. “My door’s always open. Please talk to us before you do anything rash.” 

Tink rolled her eyes. “I think I’ll manage, Sil.” 

Fawn was the last to leave. She said nothing, only gazed at Tink with a look that made her want to bury herself under the covers and never come out. 

Once they were all gone, Tink lay back down and curled up on her bed. She found herself already missing their presence, even though she was the one who’d wished them away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading, and see you on the next one!  
> -A


	9. 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> In which Terence Big Struggles in this chapter even more than he did the last

Tinker Bell flew to the old, wooden door of Fairy Mo’s shop and pulled it open. The door swung forward with a creak, and she wasted no time in flying inside, dead flower clutched tightly in her hand. 

Fairy Mo was organizing some books, but when he heard the door open he spun around to greet his visitor. 

“Tinker Bell! What a lovely surprise.” He cast a cheerful smile her way, though she did not return it. 

When his friendliness was only reciprocated with an icy glare, he hesitantly set his books down and frowned at the hostility. “Uh, is there something I can-” 

“You can have this back.” Tinker Bell slammed the flower down on his desk. Fairy Mo recoiled at the aggressive gesture. 

“I don’t want it anymore.” 

“Now wait a minute, why not?” Books forgotten, he rushed over to his desk and scooped the water lily into his hands, cradling it with care like a mother would her child. 

“Because it’s  _ broken.” _ Tinker Bell gestured to its lifeless, grey petals as if to challenge him. Fairy Mo opened his mouth to speak, but Tink barreled through. 

“It never lights up anymore, it was really inconsistent when it did, and I’m sick of its rare, unattainable powers taunting me!” She folded her arms. “You know what I think? I think you were so secretive about its powers because you didn’t want to admit it doesn’t have any. It was all made up, wasn’t it? You’re a fraud, Fairy Mo. No wonder you gave it to us for free. It’s worthless.” 

Fairy Mo’s mouth opened in shock, and Tink only felt a little guilty for the wounded look on his face. “I am many things, Tinker Bell, but I am  _ not _ a fraud. That flower is priceless, and I gave it to you as a gift because I wanted you to experience its magic the same way I did.” 

“What magic is there to experience?” an incredulous Tink exclaimed, tossing her arms up in defeat. “As far as I can see, it’s dead. And has been for a while. So, if you’ll excuse me . . . I have better things to do with my time than watch you pull more dead rabbits out of your magic hat.” She turned around and began to fly away, but Fairy Mo called out to her. 

“Where’s Terence?”

Tinker Bell stopped dead in her tracks. She slowly turned around, and flew back to the ground. She landed softly on the creaky wooden panels and wrung her hands tightly. 

“What?” It barely came out a whisper. 

“Terence,” Fairy Mo said again. “You know, the kind, handsome young gentleman you brought along last time. Where is he?” 

“He couldn’t make it.” Tink scratched behind her ear. 

“Oh . . . Why not?” 

Tink bit down a growl. How dare he pry into her personal business? 

“Is he alright? Should I be worried?” 

His tone was gentle, and his eyes understood. She realized she’d possibly been too hard on the fairy and he didn’t deserve to be lied to. 

Her gaze flitted down to the floor, heat pooling in her cheeks. “We had a fight.” 

“What was that?” Fairy Mo craned his ear. 

Tinker Bell huffed and looked up at her listener. “We had a fight,” she said louder. 

A look of realization blossomed on Fairy Mo’s face. It looked like he’d just solved a puzzle. “Of  _ course,” _ he said to himself. 

“What? What is it?” 

“What did you and Terence fight about?” he asked curiously, frowning worriedly. 

Tinker Bell didn’t feel like dispelling his curiosity; even if she had, they’d be there all day. Sure, she was notorious for zipping through stories at lightning speed, but she tended to leave out important details. Which led to more questions from her audience that ate up the time she could have spent telling the tale at a slower pace. It was no use. 

“It’s a long story.” 

Fairy Mo gave her a despondent look. “Very well. But I can promise you one thing, Tinker Bell. That flower is far from broken.” 

She stared at him as if he’d grown two heads. 

“It used to glow. Now it doesn’t,” she said with measured patience. “It did something it is no longer able to do. That is actually the very definition of broken.” 

“It still works. I promise.” Fairy Mo handed it to Tinker Bell. She pushed it away. 

“I told you, I don’t want it-” 

“One more chance. Just give it one more chance. Please.” He held it out to her again. 

“Why should I? It’s-” She stopped when she saw something in his vulnerable expression. His eyes were full of despair, and sincerity, but something else, too. Hope. 

“ . . . Alright.” Tinker Bell gingerly swiped the flower from his grasp. She frowned openly at its grey, drooping petals. Then she looked up at him, jaw tight. “I’m putting faith in you. You better not let me down.” 

She began flying away, but Fairy Mo called to her once again. 

“Tinker Bell?” 

She stopped, but did not turn around. 

“This thing you and Terence are fighting about, whatever it is, it isn’t worth losing each other. Trust me.” 

Tink looked down, full of despair. She released a shaky breath, arms pinned at her sides. “We already have.”

____

“I know we haven’t been friends for very long. And I know you’re really torn up over Tinker Bell.” Midnight plopped down into her chair, holding her gaze with Terence. Her slanted, honey brown eyes were open wide. 

Terence silently agreed as he sat in his own chair. He’d never felt this way about a fairy before. And he had no idea how he was going to heal. 

“But, um . . . I was wondering . . .” She tapped her foot nervously on the ground. “Would you possibly want to go to the ball . . . With me?” 

Whatever Terence had prepared himself for, it wasn’t that. Stunned, his own eyes widened and he sat up in his chair. A long stretch of silence passed before he was able to summon speech. 

“Wow,” was all he was able to say. “I, um . . .” He took in Midnight’s hopeful expression, the incessant tapping of her feet on the ground, and the way she locked the arms of the chair in a vice grip. He did not return her affections, and it would be unfair to lead the fairy on in such a way. 

“I . . .” He cleared his throat. “I don’t think so. It’s just . . . If I can’t go with Tink, then I don’t want to go at all.” 

Her face fell several stories. 

“I’m really sorry,” he insisted. “Only this is all so fresh, and . . . I can’t face the prospect of going with anybody else right now. You’re a great fairy, Midnight, but my heart belongs to someone else.” 

Midnight morphed from dejected to amused. She slapped a hand over her mouth, openly laughing. Terence was baffled. 

“What?” 

“Oh, Terence . . . You didn’t mean-” She was interrupted by another fit of giggles. Once she composed herself, she sighed and shook her head in amusement. 

_ “What?”  _

“You really think- I wasn’t suggesting . . .” Midnight cleared her throat and twirled with her hair. “I wasn’t saying we’d go as  _ partners _ . Just friends, that’s all. That’s why I wanted you to hear me out. You need someone to make Tinker Bell jealous, and I’m your girl.” 

“Oh,” Terence said, relieved he didn’t have to worry about concocting another rejection for Midnight pining after him. But once her words fully sank in, he frowned. 

“But I-” 

“Think about it,” Midnight said. “If you come out empty-handed, she wins. If you don’t show your face at that ball with a date then that tells her everything she needs to know. She’ll be celebrating victory before you can even say heartbreak. You need to show her you’ve moved on. That her vicious words aren’t as powerful as she’d like them to be.” 

Terence had to admit, the idea did seem inviting. 

Midnight’s eyes brightened, and she pointed a finger at him. “Admit it. You’re thinking about it. It’s got merit, hasn’t it?” 

It did. But then, Terence’s logic clocked him in the head. What was he  _ doing? _ He couldn’t scheme against Tink like this. 

“Maybe, but . . .” He sighed. “I can’t do it. I don’t want to hurt her. I’m sorry, Midnight.” 

Midnight lowered her eyes and withdrew into the chair. “I was only trying to help.” 

Immediately, Terence felt bad. “Hey, no, it’s okay. I know you were. I appreciate it, but I’d just rather not make things worse.” 

“I don’t see it as ‘making things worse’ as much as evening out the playing field.” 

Terence shook his head, smiling in resignation. “Well, then I’ll let her have this round. I’m tired of playing.” 

Midnight pouted and rolled her eyes up to the ceiling. “Who does Tinker Bell think she is having this much influence over you?” 

_ “Who . . .” _ Terence perked up and rose quickly from his chair. “That’s it!” 

Midnight eyed him as though she were talking to a crazy person. “What are you talking about?” 

“Why didn’t I think of it sooner?” He chuckled to himself, anticipation stirring inside him. 

Midnight turned and muttered to the wall, “He’s cracked. He’s lost it.” 

“I gotta go.” Fingertips flowing with energy, a newfound sense of purpose radiated through his body. He fluttered his wings and took off. 

“Where are you going?” 

“To get some advice!” Terence disappeared out of the depot. 

Midnight’s chin sank into her hands. 

Terence flew through Pixie Hollow to the large tree overlooking the forest where he knew his wise friend would be. Sure enough, there he was, perched on a branch looking out at the clumps trees with leaves swaying in the wind. 

“Hey, Mr. Owl!” Terence landed next to the bird. “How are you on this fine afternoon?” 

“Who,” the bird chirped. 

“Right, there’s the whole not talking thing.” Terence awkwardly adjusted his acorn cap. “Well, that’s okay, cause I kinda need you to listen today.” He took a seat and swung his legs back and forth under the tree. “I’m having this problem with Tink.” 

“Who?” 

“Tink.” Terence looked up at Mr. Owl, perplexed he’d already forgotten about the fairy. Maybe a lot of fairies sought his advice but surely Tink wasn’t that forgettable? 

“You know, the one I came to you about last time. My best friend. She  _ was  _ my girlfriend . . .” He stood up and faced Mr. Owl. “But now she’s mad at me about something I had no control over. I tried telling her it wasn’t my fault, but she wouldn’t listen. She shut me out. That’s what she always does when she’s mad at people. She shuts them out.” 

Mr. Owl only listened in silence. 

“And I feel like I’m always the one having to make things right, even if it isn’t my fault. But not this time.” When Mr. Owl didn’t respond, Terence clarified, “I made things right last time. Remember?” 

“Who?” 

“Me! I did. I-” Terence’s memory transported him back to that day he’d ridden the balloon and searched high and low for Tink. The terror gripping him that she’d already been killed, or worse. He knew she couldn’t have made it very far with the little amount of dust they were limited to per day, so his fearful mind had conjured some dark images and braced him for the worst. He remembered how relieved he’d felt when he’d found her, pouring her heart out and apologizing to the mirror as though he were really there. That was when it clicked. 

“It was  _ her,” _ he breathed.  _ “She _ made things right. She figured it out all on her own.” He felt a warmth settle over his chest. “I’m gonna go find her and fix this.” He dusted the dirt off his pants. “You really are too wise for your own good, Mr. Owl. Thanks for all your help!” 

He took off and headed straight for the bustling village of Tinker’s Nook. When he arrived, he landed at the town square and traveled on foot the rest of the way so as not to disturb the tinkers hard at work transporting carts and wagons. When he reached the workshop, his heart rate climbed higher. He flew inside and through the dark corridor, trying to figure out how he would start his conversation with Tink. He was worried since they’d left on such a sour note, that she might not want to see him. 

“Terence, dear, it’s so lovely to see you!” Fairy Mary greeted warmly, flying toward him. She wore her signature olive green dress, and her brown hair was twisted up in a tight bun. Terence flashed her a friendly smile in spite of his growing nerves. 

“Fly with you, Fairy Mary.” 

“Are you here to see Tinker Bell?” Fairy Mary smiled knowingly at him, and her eyes held a playful glint. 

Terence flushed. “Um, I’m- Yes, actually, I am. Is she here?” he asked as casually as he could. 

“Sadly, no.” Fairy Mary pursed her lips. “She’s out with Bobble and Clank, working on a project. They haven’t told me what it is, and they’ve been so secretive about it. Always sneaking out of the shop to work on it like I don’t notice.” 

Terence chuckled. “Nothing gets by you, Fairy Mary.” 

“Those three sure don’t seem to think so!” 

“Do you have any idea where they might’ve gone?”

“I don’t know.” Fairy Mary pinched her chin in thought. “But I did hear them say something about water.” 

“That’s all I need.” Terence was pretty sure he knew where they were. “Thanks! I’ll see you later.” 

Fairy Mary waved goodbye to the young sparrowman as he took off out of the workshop, soaring over Tinker’s Nook. He had one stop to make before the stream. 

He reached the gardens in record time, scanning the soil for a certain red-headed garden fairy. When he found her she was over by a bush of daisies conversing with some of her friends. Terence flew down in front of the crowd, feeling vastly outnumbered. 

“Hey, Rosetta,” he began, wringing his hands together. “Can I talk to you?” 

The fairies stopped their conversation and stared at him. Rosetta looked up and narrowed her eyes at him, cold and full of hostility. Terence reeled back in shock from the lack of warm greeting. 

“Sure,” she said. She stepped forward, eyes never leaving his, scrutinizing him. It took everything in his power not to back away. “Girls, excuse me.” She walked closer to him, placing her hands on her hips. “Can I help you?” 

“Uh-” Terence faltered, forgetting everything he was going to say. He had never seen Rosetta this frosty or unfriendly before. It unnerved him. He knew Tink wasn’t pleased with him right now, but how upset was she to have cast him in this kind of light? 

“Well?” she pressed. “Are you gonna say somethin? Or are you gonna just stand there like a bump on a log?” 

“I, um- I mean-” 

Rosetta huffed and spun around to walk back to her friends. 

“Wait!” 

Rosetta turned back around and glared at him, incensed. He summoned the strength to speak. 

“I’m here to make things right with Tink.” 

Rosetta lifted a brow. “Are you?” she asked flatly. “Have you gotten your vision checked lately? You’ve got the wrong fairy.” She was about to leave again, but Terence put his hands up. 

“No, please! Wait.” 

Rosetta tapped her foot impatiently on the freshly tossed soil. 

“I know I messed up in not shutting down my coworkers’ comments about her. They were horrible, and unforgivable. And I should’ve spoken up sooner. But I’m going to tell her that I will not let it happen again.”

For a moment Rosetta’s fury was replaced with confusion. Then, just as quickly, it vanished. “Well, what do you need me for?” she asked harshly. 

“I was wondering, actually, if you had any flowers I could give her.” 

Rosetta’s eyes widened comically. “Flowers? You want flowers?” She chuckled in disbelief. “Alright, then.” 

Terence was puzzled by her disproportionate reaction. What was so bad about flowers? Of course he’d actually apologize, too; the flowers were just a bonus. 

He watched Rosetta pluck a few daisies from the bush and tie them together with a thin vine she’d snagged from a nearby tree. She all but threw the bouquet at him, and he fumbled with it like a hot potato trying not to smush any of the petals. Her friends snickered at the sight. 

“I hope you know,” said Rosetta, flying close to him once more, “that it’s gonna take a lot more than daisies to make up for what you did.” She walked away without another word, leaving Terence even more bewildered. What was it he’d done? He decided this whole thing was a complete overreaction, and that the sooner he cleared the air with Tink, the better. 

Without any further ado he took off for the stream where they’d tested the Pixie Dust Express last time. 

When he got there he scoped out the area for a certain blonde haired tinker, but found no one. Then a trail of voices led him further upstream. 

“You should’ve gone with her; she wouldn’t have said no.” He instantly recognized the thick, Scottish accent as Bobble. 

“Me? On that tiny thing? No way!” Clank. “You’re half the size of me; you should’ve gone.” 

“I didn’t think to ask her until she already left-”

“That’s the thing, you never think before you do things! And it always leaves us in a big mess.” 

A gasp of surprise. “You take that back. Who’s the one who found the blueprints that  _ you _ misplaced?”

Up ahead, Terence could see Clank and Bobble standing before each other, pointing fingers and arguing fervently. 

“Guys?” he asked. 

The boys broke off their bickering and turned to greet Terence. The blonde quickly shoved the bouquet behind his back. 

“Terence!” Clank exclaimed. “Thank goodness you’re here.” 

“What’s going on?” 

“It’s Tink.” Bobble frantically ran up to him, eyes bulging out of his goggles. “You need to talk some sense into her!” He gripped Terence’s shoulders tightly and shook him. 

Terence took his free hand and placed it on Bobble’s thin arm in an attempt to placate him. “Whoa, Bobble. Just slow down,” he said, though he couldn’t quell the worry stirring in his own stomach. 

Bobble let go of him. “Sorry, Terence, it’s just . . . Miss Bell took the Pixie Dust Express for a test drive.” 

Terence’s eyebrows furrowed in confusion. That was supposed to be their thing, and he was hurt she’d gone and done it without him, but he didn’t think it licensed that kind of reaction from Bobble. 

“Okay?” He hoped his nonchalance didn’t come across as insulting to the distressed tinkers. “So, who’d she go with?” 

Clank and Bobble only stared at him solemnly. 

“She did go with someone, right?” Terence checked. He figured they must have just blanked on the fairy’s name. 

Clank and Bobble shared a troubled glance, which told Terence everything he needed to know. 

“Wait, you let her go  _ alone?”  _

His heart hammered heavily in his chest. He could have punched them. Boiling hot anger simmered on the surface of his skin. 

A bumbling Bobble flitted his nervous gaze between him and Clank. “I-We-” 

_ “Why?”  _

“We tried to tell her, Terence,” Clank insisted urgently, eyes wide. “She demanded we let her go by herself. She said she didn’t want us getting in danger.” 

Terence smacked himself in the forehead. “Of course she did, it’s Tink. That doesn’t mean you  _ listen.”  _

He clenched the bouquet so hard in his hand he was afraid it would break. 

“We need to find her. Now.” 

The trio raced upstream so fast they were sparkling blurbs of light soaring through the sky and weaving through the trees. 

“She might be pretty far ahead!” yelled Clank, though Terence could hardly hear him over the wind lapping at his ears. 

“What was that she said?” yelled Bobble on his other side. 

“I said, she might be pretty far ahead!” Clank shouted even louder. Terence clamped his hands over his eardrums, cursing himself for choosing to fly between them. 

Suddenly, Terence heard the sound of something skidding. It ripped rapidly through the water, shredding the surface and leaving a foaming trail in its wake. He peered down. It was the Pixie Dust Express. He had a bird’s-eye view of Tinker Bell’s signature blonde bun, but when his eyes wandered further he gasped in horror. 

She was heading straight for a boulder.

“Tink!” 

“Tinker Bell!” 

The guys swooped down and screamed her name, but it was no use. The boat’s momentum had built up too high. It plowed through the water like a tornado. 

Terence realized he couldn’t just stand there. He had to do something. He flew toward the boat. 

“Terence, be careful!” Clank called to his receding figure. The boat was about to hit the boulder. Terence zoomed toward the boat, dropping the bouquet in his haste, and in a split second he dived in and grabbed Tinker Bell. He held her in a vice grip, and was about to fly her away to safety, but they weren’t quick enough to evade the impact. The boat crashed into the boulder, cards flying everywhere, and catapulted Terence and Tinker Bell straight toward the boulder. Terence shouted in terror, and turned them to shield her from the rock, but before they hit anything a sharper rock tore at the fabric of his shirt, tearing into his skin, and pulled him down. Gasping in pain, he dropped Tinker Bell and she plummeted down towards the rocks. 

“Tink! No!” Terence cried, struggling against the hold his fabric had on him. He tore through his trap, hardly noticing he ripped his shirt, or the sharp sting of the cut above his ribs. He yanked himself free and flew down to where she’d landed. 

She lay unmoving, and a small trickle of ruby red blood dripped from the top of her hair. Her head was lolled to the side, and her left arm had a nasty cut from where she’d hit a sharp rock. Terence grimaced.  _ If that had been her head . . .  _

He gingerly reached for her with trembling hands, whispering pleads and prayers under his breath. He lifted up her fragile form to a sitting position and her head dropped down, lifeless. 

“Clank! Bobble!” he cried hoarsely. 

He snaked one arm around her back to hold her up while his other felt around her neck for a pulse point. Her head dropped onto his shoulder. He sighed heavily in relief when he found one, however faint. 

“Terence, are you guys okay- Oh, no. Oh, no.” A panic-stricken Bobble and Clank flew before him, mouths open in horror. 

“Is she alive?” exclaimed Clank. 

Terence nodded as he gathered the fairy into his arms and lifted her bridal style. Tink’s legs dangled limply, and her face was snuggled up against his chest. 

“This is why you don’t let her go alone.” 

“I’m so-”

“There’s no time. We need to get her to the hospital.” 

Anxiety pulsed inside him like a drum the entire trip. Terence couldn’t believe this had happened, that Clank and Bobble had allowed her to do this, that  _ she _ had allowed herself to do this. He needed her to be okay like he needed air to breathe. 

When they got there, one look at them sent the staff scampering. 

“I need a healer. Now.” 

A healing fairy flew up to Terence immediately. “Oh, goodness,” he gasped. “We’ll take care of her.” Terence wasted no time in handing her unconscious form to the healer, and watched with bated breath as they whisked her away. 

He couldn’t help but wonder if this was all his fault. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sometimes things have to get worse before they get better   
> -A


	10. 10

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> the drama flares up in this one broh

Terence, Bobble, and Clank made their way into the waiting room, anxiously sitting down in some plush chairs. All Terence could picture was Tink’s pale, unmoving form as he’d handed her off to the healer. She hadn’t so much as stirred. 

A healer fairy flew toward them, eyes crinkling in concern at the blood dripping down Terence’s side revealed through the rips in his shirt. 

“You’re hurt,” she said. “Let me get you something to clean that.” 

“No, I’m fine,” he insisted, but she had already flown away. 

He sighed, gripping the handles of his chair. 

“What happened to ya?” Bobble asked, leaning forward. 

“It’s just a scratch,” Terence dismissed. 

“Doesn’t look like just a scratch. You’re bleedin!” 

“I’m fine.” 

“I’m worried about Tink,” said Clank. “You think she’ll be alright?” 

“She has to be,” replied Terence, determined not to consider otherwise. “She’s one of the strongest fairies I know. She’ll get through this.” 

“This was all our fault,” said Clank, dejected. “We should never have let her go alone; if it weren’t for us, this wouldn’t have happened.” 

“Well, she shouldn’t have volunteered herself to go alone,” Terence countered. “It’s not like you guys didn’t try to stop her.” Well, they could’ve tried harder, but he kept that part to himself. 

Truthfully, he was wracked with guilt. If it hadn’t been for his pride, he and Tink would have made up earlier and they would’ve gone for the test drive together. And if they had faced any danger, they would have been able to help each other through it. She wouldn’t have been all by herself, pummeling at full speed toward that boulder with only the mercy of nature at her disposal. 

And nature was not very gracious towards recklessness. 

The healer fairy returned with a wet rag, a small vessel of alcohol, and a clump of bandages. She kneeled in front of Terence. 

“What are you doing?” he asked, tensing up. 

The fairy sighed. “Trying to help you. You didn’t think I was gonna let you fly outta here with that cut unattended, did you?” 

Terence thumbed the fabric of his tattered garment self-consciously. 

“Can you lift your shirt for me, please?” 

Terence scooted closer to the fairy and did as he was instructed. His cut wasn’t deep, but it was red and angry as a hungry hawk. The skin around it had already started to pinken. 

The fairy brought the warm, wet cloth to his skin and pressed gently over the cut. Terence hissed in pain, flinching back. 

“Try to stay still,” she advised, dabbing over the wound. He bit his tongue to keep from crying out. After a few gentle pats she removed the cloth from his cut.

“I’m going to clean your wound now.” 

She poured a generous amount of alcohol onto the rag and pressed it back into his skin. Instantly a wave of searing hot pain exploded in his side, like an open flame. He gasped in shock at the contact. His eyes slid shut, and he gripped the chair so tight his knuckles turned white. 

“I know, I know. I’m almost done.” The fairy frowned sympathetically. “You do not want this getting infected, trust me.” Terence gritted his teeth as she continued to clean him. 

Not soon enough she pulled the alcohol-soaked cloth away from his side. Terence sighed heavily in relief, deflating against the chair. 

“I’m going to bandage you, okay?” The healing fairy wrapped the soft, white fabric all the way around his toned stomach. “I extended it all across your torso so it won’t rip when you change,” she explained. 

“Thank you.” He gingerly patted the area. 

She was about to fly away, but Terence called, “Wait! Can you . . . Do you have any idea who I’d be able to ask about an update on Tink’s condition?” 

She raised an eyebrow, but then a look of realization bloomed on her face. “Oh, you mean the blonde one you just brought in?” 

He nodded. 

“I’m sorry, but I don’t actually oversee any of the patient’s reports or know when they’re ready for visitors. You’ll have to talk to the head healer. She’s busy right now, but I can let her know you wish to speak with her.” 

“That’d be great. Thanks.” 

The fairy nodded politely, then flew away. 

“Well, guys . . .” Terence looked at Clank and Bobble. “We could be waiting a while.” 

And so they waited. Time ticked slowly. Daylight waned. Stomachs growled. 

After what felt like several hours had crawled by, the boys decided to call it a day and come back tomorrow, figuring Tink needed her rest. As they left the hospital with drooped down wings, an idea struck Terence. 

He knew how to cheer up Tink and hopefully make things right.

____

Tinker Bell woke with a splitting pain in her head. She groaned, twisting her body in bed and rubbing her forehead. She felt a bandage on the right side of her head that reached up into her hair. Hesitantly she lifted a sore arm to touch it, then winced. It  _ hurt _ . 

Her eyes fluttered open, and she looked around the brown and green room with ferns and flowers potted on shelves. The late afternoon light cast an array of shadows on the walls, and it almost would have looked pretty if Tink hadn’t been wondering where the hell she was. The last thing she remembered, she had been grazing through the water on the Pixie Dust Express during her test drive. She couldn’t recall what had happened to the boat. 

She felt a throbbing pain in her left arm, so she lifted both arms to examine them; they were littered with scratches and bruises of various sizes. Her left forearm had a bandage with stains of scarlet seeping through. 

Not wanting to lie down any longer, she propped up her pillows and sat back against the bed, which took a considerable amount of effort in her weakened condition. She looked at her nightstand on the left and found a little silver bell. Curiously she reached over, picked it up, and gave it an experimental ring. 

The high-pitched sound reverberated throughout the room, bouncing off the walls, echoing in her eardrums. Tink momentarily shielded herself from the force of it. 

Her door opened, and in flew an older fairy with deep, chocolate skin and a poofy black bob. She held a cup of an unknown liquid, and her face brightened at the sight of Tink. 

“Glad to see you’re finally awake.” She flew over to her bed and handed Tink the mug. “Drink up.” 

“What’s this?” she asked, voice throaty from disuse. 

“It’s something to help with your pain.” 

Tink brought the cup to her lips, tilted her head back, and greedily gulped down its contents. It tasted tangy on her tongue, but the need to dampen her pain overrode her desire to satiate her taste buds. She nodded gratefully at the healer, who watched her with interested eyes. 

When she was finished she handed the empty cup back to the fairy, who placed it on her nightstand. 

“Do you know where you are?” the healing fairy asked. 

“I’m starting to get a pretty good idea.” 

The healer smiled humorlessly. “Well, you’re in the hospital. And I’m the head healing fairy; my name is Ivy. Your injuries were the most grievous out of everyone that’s come in today, so they assigned me to you and I’m overseeing your recovery. I say this not to frighten you, but to assure you that you’re in good hands.” 

Tinker Bell blinked. “Oh . . . Do you know what happened to the Pixie Dust Express?” 

Ivy pursed her lips in confusion. “I’m not sure what you’re-” 

“It’s my boat that I made. The last thing I remember is taking it out for a test drive. You wouldn’t happen to know if it survived, do you?” 

“Oh!” Ivy shook her head bemusedly. “You tinkers care more about your inventions than your own selves . . .” 

“Well? Do you?” 

The healer sighed, lowering her dark eyes down to the ground. “It didn’t make it. I’m sorry.” 

A downcast Tink shook her head in disbelief. All that hard work, months of tireless preparation, blown away to bits in an instant because of her own foolishness. How was she going to help Terence with his dust deliveries now? 

Then she remembered. She and Terence were no longer friends. She had lost all desire to help him. 

“Clank and Bobble are gonna be just  _ thrilled _ with me, aren’t they.” 

“I think they’re more worried about you than the boat.” 

That reminded her, she’d been with the two tinkers before she’d tested the boat. They must’ve been the ones to bring her in. 

“Ivy,” she said, “do you know what exactly happened to me?” 

Ivy nodded. “Mhm. The way your friends described it, you were heading right for a large boulder. Impact with this boulder could have been fatal. That’s why one of your friends dived in and pulled you out just in the nick of time. But he didn’t have the chance to fly you away to safety before the boat hit the rock and sent you both pummeling straight at it.”

Tinker Bell gasped, horrified. Grateful for either Clank or Bobble coming to her rescue, but horrified. 

“He’s okay, right?” 

“Yes, he’s fine. He’s got a nasty scrape on his side, but other than that, he’s fine. We fixed him right up.” 

Guilt flooded her like an overflowing dam. She definitely owed one of them an enormous apology for insisting to go alone without thinking of the consequences or listening to their reservations. 

“I can’t believe I did this,” she said softly. 

“You got incredibly lucky,” said Ivy, “because you didn’t actually hit the boulder. Your friend protected you, and blocked you from the worst of it. But unfortunately for him, he hit a pretty sharp rock, which was the source of his cut. This made him drop you from a considerable height. But the way you landed was also lucky. If your head had fallen where your arm did, you might not have survived.” 

It was as if Ivy telling the story strengthened the already intense pulsing in her head. Tink timidly touched her bandaged head again, then winced in pain. Touching it only inflamed the discomfort. 

Ivy frowned in concern. “Do you need me to get you more pain reliever?” 

“No, I’m okay.” 

“Don’t try to downplay the pain you’re in,” Ivy suggested kindly. “It’s important we get you recovered as comfortably as possible, and a part of doing that is managing your pain so it’s at a tolerable level.” 

Tink sighed. “Alright. I’ll take a little more. Thank you.” 

Ivy nodded. “I’ll go get some. You also have a visitor here; would you like to see them?” 

Tink sat up straighter in excitement. She would have been bored to pieces otherwise. “Yes, please!” 

“I’ll be right back.” 

Ivy exited her room. Tinker Bell played with her stray hairs and picked at her bandage until she heard a knock at the door. 

“Come in!” she called, hoping it was Clank or Bobble so she could apologize. 

The door swung open, and in flew the last fairy she wanted to see: Terence. 

Tinker Bell tensed up, hands flying down to the sheets and fisting them tightly. She drew in a sharp breath and subconsciously shrank into her pillows. 

She still felt utterly humiliated that he and his friends had made jokes out of her, and now the thought of him seeing her in this state embarrassed her even more. 

“Hey, Tink . . .” he greeted, an unreadable expression on his face. 

She said nothing. 

“I brought you your flower.” He pulled out her grey water lily from behind his back, vase and all, and walked over to set it on her nightstand. Tinker Bell furrowed her brows at the gesture. How  _ dare _ he after everything he’d done? Her eyes hardened in barely suppressed rage. 

“I also have a boysenberry roll. I figured you might be hungry.” He pulled it out of his pocket, tossed it in the air, and set it down next to the flower. Tinker Bell eyed the role hungrily. She certainly was, though she would not give him the satisfaction of telling him. 

His eyes landed back on her, and instantly his face was filled with a look she didn’t like at all. 

“How are you feeling?” he asked. 

“Not too great,” she answered shortly, crossing her arms. 

He frowned at the hostility, but persisted with a friendly tone of his own. “I can’t imagine, after the spill you took-” 

“You thought you could just bring my flower in here and everything would be fine? It doesn’t work like that.” 

Confusion crossed his face. “What are you- I thought maybe it would glow again if it knew you were in pain, then-” 

“So now you think the flower is  _ sentient? _ Now you think flowers have full-fledged, functioning brains just like us? Thoughts and feelings?  _ Really, _ Terence?” 

Terence reeled back, gobsmacked. 

She knew she was being cruel, but she wanted him to feel as bad as she did. 

“I thought- I only meant- It’s a magic flower,” he sputtered, affronted. “Who are you to say what kind of thoughts and feelings it does or doesn’t possess?” 

Before Tink could concoct an adequate retort the door swung open once again, revealing Ivy with her painkiller. She flew in, and Terence politely parted from the side of her bed to give her room. 

“I’m back. Brewed it extra strong for you,” Ivy said cheerfully, planting it aside her flower on the nightstand. “I know that head of yours can’t be too comfortable right now.” 

“Thank you, Ivy,” said Tink, tone clipped. Ivy glanced between her and Terence, and her smile faded. It was easy to tell she picked up on the tension lingering heavily in the room. 

“You’re most welcome,” she said. “I’ll leave you two be.” And she left. 

A long stretch of silence passed. Tink and Terence just looked at each other, neither saying a word. Neither wanted to be the one to break the silence. Finally, Tink couldn’t take it anymore. The air was so strained with tension it was impossible to swallow. She spoke. 

“Why are you here, Terence?” 

Terence’s soft blue eyes swum with confusion, and he took a step closer to the bed. “Why am I here?” he echoed quietly, as though he couldn’t believe the question. “I was worried about you. I wanted to make sure you were okay.” 

“Well, you saw. You made sure,” Tink said dismissively. “Is there anything else you need from me?” 

Terence’s brows relaxed, and his face slacked in understanding. “Tink . . .” 

“Are you here just to rub it in my face that you’re-” 

“Tink, I’ve been wanting to tell you that I’m really sorry.” 

She froze. Her eyes widened, and her lips parted in surprise. 

“I’m sorry about the bets, I’m sorry that my friends couldn’t keep their horrible comments to themselves, and I’m sorry you had to hear it from them and not me. But I’m here to tell you I will not let them say stuff like that about you anymore.” 

“So you’re basically just blaming everything on your friends and slapping an apology on it?” 

Terence sighed frustratedly. “No, Tink, that’s not what I’m-” 

“If you thought that I would just let this go, then you are sorely mistaken.” 

“I know, you have every right to be mad at me. But-” 

“Did you think I’d just let you use me as your plaything?” 

“Tink, no!” Terence shouted, causing her to jump in fear. He never lost his temper like that. Tink bit her lip and folded her arms, feeling her walls springing up. 

“If you would just  _ listen.” _ Terence drew in a deep breath, then exhaled slowly. “I was trying to tell you, I didn’t make those bets with my friends. I promise. They might have told me things, but that doesn’t mean I listened. I might have ignored them instead of sticking up for you, which was wrong, but that doesn’t mean I liked hearing it. I was sickened by what they said. Tink, I could  _ never _ think of you that way.” Another step closer. 

“You mean so much more to me than that.” 

The flower pulsed, glowing for the smallest second. But neither fairy noticed, for both their gazes were fixed firmly on the other. 

Tink’s heart thudded heavily in her chest, so full of hope and longing. Terence sounded like he was telling the truth . . . She could see it in his eyes. 

_ So then why was he going to the ball with another girl? _

She looked at him for a moment before breaking eye contact, fiddling with the bandage on her arm. She couldn’t give in, no matter how serious he’d sounded. 

“Tink?” 

“Is there anything else you wanna tell me?” she asked softly, looking back up at him. If he could just explain to any capacity what was going on, why he was taking another girl after he’d just confessed all those things, then maybe they could make amends. At least be friends. 

Terence cranked an eyebrow in confusion. “Uh . . . No? I thought I cleared everything up. Is there something else you’re upset about? Because nothing else is really ringing a bell with me.” 

Tink’s mouth dropped open in shock. He could not be serious. “Wait,” she said, chuckling. She scooped up her cup and sipped on its steaming contents. “You’re kidding, right?” She carefully placed the mug back down. 

Terence glanced to the side, then back at the tinker fairy. He slowly shook his head. “No, I’m not kidding . . . How hard did you hit your head?” 

Tinker Bell scoffed. “Don’t bring my injury into this! Is there really nothing else you want to say to me?” 

“Tink, I said I was sorry.” Traces of impatience leaked from his collected tone. “What more do I need to say? I could ask  _ you _ to apologize for overreacting and not listening to me try to explain this to you last week, but I’m not.” 

_ Why _ wasn’t he owning up to this? 

“You’re seriously asking me to apologize after that stunt you just pulled?” 

Terence spun in a circle. He placed his hands on the sides of his head and then threw them out. 

“What stunt?” he exclaimed, infuriated. “Stand by and watch a couple of my coworkers say some stuff about you? So what? I apologized for it. For not standing up for you sooner, and I explained what really happened. You heard me, right?” 

Tinker Bell stared at him in disbelief. 

He eyed the bandage on her head. “I think there’s a chance you might have a concussion.” 

“I do  _ not _ have a concussion,” she growled defensively. “And you’re evading my question. How am I supposed to believe anything you say when you’re standing here lying straight to my face?” 

“Lying? What am I lying about?” Terence exclaimed incredulously. “I’ve told you before that I would never lie to you.” 

She couldn’t maintain eye contact. It hurt too much. So she reached for her cup and drank the rest of the tart liquid. She smacked her tongue in distaste. 

“Terence,” she said, “that right there was a lie. Because you’re lying right now.”

“I’m not lying!” 

“Save it,” she scowled. 

Hurt flashed across his face. He took a step back. “That’s all you think of me?” he asked quietly. 

She set her jaw in a firm, hard frown. All the despair bubbling underneath she kept tucked away. 

“You really don’t care, do you.” His arms dropped in defeat to his sides. 

Care? He thought she didn’t care? She absolutely cared that he was taking some other fairy-  _ Midnight _ \- to the ball instead of her. It devastated her. But she’d be damned if she showed a morsel of emotion after his blatant denial. 

“Look at the pot calling the kettle black,” Tink seethed, royally dismayed. “You’re the one taking another fairy to the ball.” 

Terence’s eyes widened. That split moment of silence was all she was willing to work with. She shot him her best deadpan expression. 

He rushed back over to her side. “I’m not-” 

“Midnight?  _ Really?”  _

Terence rapidly shook his head. “I told her no. I swear-” 

“It’s fitting, actually,” she said flippantly, raising her eyebrows with a falsified calm. “Two fairies who are better than anyone else I know at lying and manipulating others to get what they want. You two are perfect for each other.” 

As soon as the words left her mouth she knew she’d gone too far. They tasted bitter on her tongue, harsher than they’d sounded in her brain. 

Terence flinched as though he’d been lashed. He looked deeply anguished, face clouded with confusion and despair. “I-” His voice cracked. He only swallowed thickly. 

Tink felt the blade of her own words slicing him deep. Their impact radiated off of his slumped over form. 

“That tells me everything I need to know.” He turned to the side, facing the wall parallel to her bed. “That’s the last time I try to help you.” 

The same words he’d spoken to her last time they’d fought; only this time with twice as much misery and pain. 

She found herself reaching for him, wanting to stop him from leaving, suddenly and desperately needing him to stay, but he flew away. 

She slumped back into the pillows, sighing deeply, pinching the bridge of her nose. What had she just done? 

____

Bobble and Clank hovered around the damaged remains of the Pixie Dust Express, coming to a single conclusion. This boat was not salvageable. They’d have to start from scratch. 

“All our hard work,” Clank groaned. “All because Miss Bell wanted to be some big, tough fairy. Well, look where it got us.” 

“What was she trying to prove, exactly?” Bobble pondered, prodding at a part of the demolished propeller that barely poked above the surface of the stream. “It’s just us; I don’t see why she wanted to impress us so much.” 

Clank spotted a flower petal peeking out of the water perched behind a pebble. He flew over to the petal to take a closer look and found it was an entire bunch of flowers tucked behind the rock. 

“I don’t remember this being a part of the boat,” he commented curiously, gathering the flowers delicately into his hands as not to break them. Then he tried to lift them out of the water. When he was met with resistance, he paused. He pulled harder, and an entire tuft of flowers shot up out of the stream, and a splash of water smacked him in the face. 

“Whatcha got there, Clanky? A missing part?” 

“No, flowers! A bouquet of flowers, actually . . .” He examined the bouquet, or what was left of it. Many of the flowers’ petals had disappeared, or were sopping wet. He turned to show the flowers to Bobble. 

Bobble gasped. They weren’t his or Clank’s. “Wait a minute, I think those are Terence’s!” 

“Terence brought flowers for the boat?” 

“No . . .” His eyes sparkled with excitement. “He must have brought them for Tink.” 

“I’m not following.” 

Bobble got a sly smirk on his face. “I knew it.” 

“What?” 

“Terence likes Tinker Bell. And what better way to tell her than with a bouquet of flourishing flowers? Well, they were flourishing . . .” 

“I thought we all liked Tinker Bell,” said Clank. 

Bobble shook his head at his friend. “No.” He placed a hand on Clank’s shoulder. “See, Terence likes Tink in a special kind of way. Like, a more-than-friends kind of way. It’s different from the way we like her.”

“Ohh.” Clank perked up. “I see.” 

“Yes!” Bobble clapped his hands enthusiastically. “Now, we must get these to Miss Bell at once!” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Please don't hate me:))  
> But thanks for reading! See ya on the next one  
> -A


	11. 11

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tink's got a lotta people that care about her

Bobble and Clank trekked back to the hospital. Bobble shielded the flowers from the fierce winds of their flight. 

“So how long have you known that Terence likes Miss Bell?” Clank asked. 

“I’ve just noticed all these little things. He visits her at the shop often, they’re always together, and their hugs last longer than usual.” Bobble grinned with pride at his own sleuthing skills. “They make the perfect pair! Though, I haven’t seen much of him this past week.” 

“I wonder if they got in a fight,” Clank pondered. 

“I can’t imagine,” said Bobble in disagreement. “Terence and Tink never fight about anything! Except that one time when they built the scepter.” 

“That was  _ bad _ . She wouldn’t talk to anyone for a week, she was so mad.” 

“When Terence and Tink fight, everybody knows it. So if they fought this time, which would explain why he hasn’t been to the shop, then why hasn’t she said anything?” 

“It could be her fault, and she doesn’t want to admit it.” 

“I’d believe that,” Bobble conceded. “But if they are fighting, then hopefully these flowers can help them make up because she needs to know they came from him.” 

The two tinkers arrived at the hospital and flew inside. Bobble approached the worker desk. A freckled fairy with auburn hair looked up at him from her paperwork. She had big, emerald green eyes and plump, pink lips. Bobble was stupefied by her beauty. 

“How can I help you?” she asked tonelessly. 

“Hi! Uh, my name’s Bobble.” 

She peered at him. “Hello, Bobble.” 

Bobble smiled at her as brightly as he could. A long moment of silence lingered in his wake. 

The fairy looked uncomfortable. “Uh, what can I-”

“Oh, right, yes, of course!” Bobble straightened his goggles. “I’m bringing something for one of your patients, Tinker Bell.” 

“Who’s Tinker Bell?” 

“The blonde with the big bun and leafy green dress we brought in yesterday. She hit her head pretty hard, and the head healer’s taking care of her.” 

The fairy’s eyes flashed in recognition. “Oh, Ivy was telling me about that . . . What did you bring?” 

Bobble held up the dripping bouquet of wilted flowers. The fairy made a revolted face. 

“Um, what are these?” Bobble could hear the judgement in her tone. 

“I know they don’t look like much, but can you just make sure she knows that they came from our friend named Terence?”

He passed her the bouquet, and she quickly moved it away from her paperwork. 

“Also,” Bobble continued, “these were left at the site where the boat crashed. He dropped them when he flew in to rescue her.” 

“Of course.” The red-haired fairy smiled dubiously at him. She set the bouquet down, looked back down to her paperwork, and reached for a writing utensil in the little jar on top of the mahogany desk. Bobble openly ogled at her. 

After a moment of staring, the fairy looked up. Bobble was quick to act. 

“A-Actually, do you know if we’re allowed to visit her? We could just give them to her ourselves.” 

The fairy looked up. “Well, she already has more than the allowed amount of visitors right now. We made an exception at the head healer’s request, and because her friends were being very . . . insistent.” 

“Oh, okay.” Bobble frowned in disappointment. “We’ll come back later, then.”

“I’ll make sure these get to her.” The fairy sounded very bored. 

Bobble nodded, perking back up. “Thank you . . .” 

The fairy promptly returned her attention to her paperwork. 

Bobble turned around to look at Clank, eyes wide and mouth open. 

Clank motioned at him to go on. Bobble accepted the much-needed encouragement. He maintained his stance in front of the desk, tapping his foot on the ground. After a few moments, the fairy looked up again. 

“Why are you still here?” 

Bobble whipped around at Clank, panicked. Clank gestured at him more harshly. 

Bobble turned back around, releasing a high-pitched laugh. “No reason, I was just . . . Uh, what’s your name?” 

Her facial expression did not move. “Autumn.” 

“That’s a lovely name,” Bobble complimented. 

Autumn remained stoic as stone. 

Bobble, ever immune to social cues, decided to try again. “What’s your favorite color?” 

“I have a lot of work to do.” Autumn drummed her fingers impatiently on the desk. 

Bobble did not fully understand. “Oh. You have . . . Work. Right. You-”

“Have a lot of work to do. Mhm.” Autumn nodded, looking at him patronizingly. “So . . . Unless there’s something you need from me, I’m gonna get back to it.” 

She looked back down and resumed her work as though the interaction had never transpired. 

Bobble’s eyes widened in surprise at her bluntness, and he backed away from the desk. 

Clank patted his back in as they flew away. “You are completely hopeless.”

____

All five fairies flew into Tinker Bell’s room. They fought to get through the narrow doorway, squeezing and pushing past each other in an attempt to reach her first. 

Tinker Bell slowly opened her eyes in irritation at being disturbed, but smiled warmly at the sight of her friends. 

“Move out of the way!” yelled Vidia aggressively. 

“You’re blocking  _ me!” _ screeched Iridessa. 

“Ow! That was my toe!” cried Rosetta. 

Tinker Bell stretched her sore arms up in the air, then situated herself more upright. 

Fawn was the first to emerge. “Tink!” The fairy flew to her bedside, quickly followed by the others. 

Fawn’s amber brown eyes widened, and she gasped quietly at the sight of Tink’s vast array of injuries and bandages. The tones of blue and black dispersed across her arms alarmed her, to say the least. She reached her hands out, then thought the better of it and pulled them back. 

“What happened to you, sunshine?” exclaimed Rosetta, widening her green eyes. 

“You’re all bandaged up, you poor thing!” Silvermist pushed past Fawn and Rosetta and reached for Tinker Bell, rubbing softly along her injured arm. 

“Sil, give her some space,” said Iridessa, which was ironic considering how little space she’d given Tink the first time they’d talked. She’d held her upside down because she’d thought she’d fainted. 

“Your  _ head!”  _ Silvermist cried. “Mother Dove, what did you  _ do?” _ She flew closer, inspecting the injury with worried eyes. 

“I-” 

“Sil! Space?” Iridessa stood with her hands on her hips, cocking one eyebrow. 

“Oh! Right.” Silvermist sheepishly drew her hands away from Tink’s arm and backed up. 

Her friends wasted no time in gathering around her. Vidia, Iridessa, and Rosetta flew around to the right side of the bed while Fawn and Silvermist stayed to the left. Vidia was bold enough to take a seat on the foot of her bed, which Tink did not mind. She was just relieved to have the company. Ivy had given her some books, but they weren’t enough to diffuse her boredom. 

“We came as quick as we could,” said Fawn. 

“I’m just glad you’re alive and breathin!” exclaimed Rosetta. 

“Can we get you anything? Are you thirsty?” asked Iridessa. 

Tink shook her head, pleasantly surprised by her friends’ generosity. “No, really, I’m okay. Thanks, though, guys.” 

“Clank and Bobble told us what happened,” Vidia said. “Are you alright?” 

“I will be,” answered Tink honestly. “My head’s not feeling much better, but Ivy said it would take time.” 

“Who’s Ivy?” 

“The head healer.” 

“Oh, you’ve got the head healer?” asked Fawn. “You’re probably getting all kinds of special treatment.” 

“I don’t understand how special of treatment I can really get in here, but I see your point.” 

Fawn lowered her eyes. 

“I’m sorry about the Pixie Dust Express,” said Iridessa, changing the subject. “I know you worked really hard on it.” 

Tink grimaced at the thought of her boat being torn to pieces. She decided it would be better for her not to assess the damage. It was bad enough she’d left Clank and Bobble to deal with the fallout on their own. 

“I can always rebuild it,” she reasoned, more for herself than for them. “The real scare was when Clank and Bobble lost my blueprints.” 

Iridessa and Fawn chuckled. 

“Imagine that,” Rosetta mused sarcastically. 

“Tink,” said Fawn, frowning. Tink tensed at the swift switch of tone. 

“They also told us you insisted on going alone on the boat. Why did you do that?” 

Tink’s brows furrowed. Discomfort stirred in the pits of her stomach. “Because I wanted to,” she said simply. “And I didn’t want them getting in danger.” 

“That’s what they told us you said.” Fawn narrowed her eyes in suspicion. 

“But it seems like it’d be more dangerous going by yourself,” commented Rosetta. 

“I just didn’t want them to go. There’s no big conspiracy,” Tink defended, patience thinning quickly. 

Fawn seemed like she wanted to speak more on the subject; she even raised a finger, but with the scathing look Tink gave her she dropped it. 

“So,” said Vidia, smirking. “Have you and Lover Boy made up yet?” 

Tinker Bell felt a lurch in her chest. 

“Vidia!” Fawn hissed. 

“No,” Tink said quietly, folding her hands in her lap, “we haven’t.” 

“I’m sorry, sugarplum,” said Rosetta. “I take it the flowers didn’t work, then?”

“Huh? What flowers?” 

“He stopped by to see me yesterday and asked me for some flowers to give you. He seemed pretty upset.” 

Wait,  _ what? _

Her eyes widened in shock. 

“He did?” she asked, voice small. 

“I gave him a pretty hard time because of the whole Midnight situation, but yes. He did.” 

“Well, he must have changed his mind, then,” Tink figured. “Because I never got them.” 

“Oh.” Rosetta palmed at her ginger curls, smoothing them out. 

Vidia eyed the grey water lily perched on its green vase. “Then who brought you  _ this?”  _

Tink looked at the flower, eyes narrowing with resentment. Resentment for its blatant refusal to glow, and resentment toward Fairy Mo for putting on a false show. 

“Oh, Terence did,” she said boredly. She ignored the looks of surprise scattered across her friends’ faces. “But I don’t know why he bothered. It hasn’t glowed in over a week. I’m pretty sure it’s broken. I think Fairy Mo was lying about the whole most-powerful-magic speech, to be honest.” 

She fiddled with her bandage. “But oh well. It was fun while it lasted. It’s not like I paid for it, right?” 

The fairies stared silently at her, shell-shocked. 

Tink paused. An awkward silence followed her speech. 

“I’m actually planning on throwing it away as soon as I get out of here,” she continued, wondering why her friends were looking at her as though someone had died. “I can use that vase for something else, like  _ real _ flowers.” 

“Tink . . .” said Silvermist sorrowfully. 

“I don’t think you should throw it away,” said Fawn. 

“Why not?” 

“Cause there’s somethin special about it,” said Rosetta. 

“You’re the one who hated it when I first got it!” 

“I never hated it. I was apprehensive,” Rosetta corrected. “But once it started glowin . . . It enchanted me, Tink. If there’s even the smallest chance it will glow again, you gotta try to be patient with it.” 

“If it wanted to glow, it would have glowed by now,” Tink said levelly with an air of finality. “I have no more use for it.” 

“You never know,” said Silvermist lightly. “It could light up again when you least expect it.” 

“I highly doubt that.” 

“Just hold onto it a little longer. Please? For me?” Rosetta leaned in closer to her, placing her hands on the edge of the bed. 

Tinker Bell peered up at her skeptically. “If you want it so bad, Rosetta, you can have it.” 

“No, just- I want you to wait a couple more weeks. Just a couple more weeks, and if it doesn’t glow by then, you can say you told me so.” 

Tink sighed. “Alright, fine. But since I already know it’s not gonna glow, how about we just get it over with now? I told you so.” She crossed her arms stubbornly. 

“Tink . . .” A displeased Rosetta shook her head. 

“So,” said Vidia from the corner of the bed, arresting everyone’s attention. “I’m gonna say something that I never normally say, and for the record what I’m about to say will not leave the confines of this room.” 

Tink trained her gaze on the fast-flying fairy. 

“I think you should listen to her.” 

“What?” Tink balked, mouth opening in surprise. 

“You heard me. I’m not repeating myself.” 

“But why?” she demanded. 

“Listen, sweetie. I’m going to tell you this as a friend. I know sometimes you like to think you know everything, but the fact of the matter is, you don’t.” 

Vidia’s speech splashed a considerable amount of color onto Tink’s already scarlet cheeks. 

“I think there’s a lot more to that flower than what meets the eye, and I’m not alone in my opinion. Can anyone else back me up here?” 

Every other fairy in the room save for Tink nodded their head. 

Her sapphire eyes widened in astonishment. 

“We really think it’s important you keep it,” said Iridessa, more seriously than she’d ever sounded. 

Speechless, Tink looked across the room at all her friends who were in agreement with Vidia. 

“Why?” she asked, voice coming out cracked. 

“Because.” Silvermist gently took her hand. “We just have a feeling.” 

“I’ll think about it,” Tink said flippantly. 

The fairies exchanged some glances, but they reasoned it was the best they were going to get out of her. 

“So how’d your visit with Terence go?” asked Fawn. “Not well, I’m guessing.” 

“You’d be correct.” Dread coursed through her veins at the mere thought of dishing out the details. 

“Wait, I’m confused,” said Rosetta. “Terence came and visited you here, but he didn’t bring you the flowers?” 

“Nope, that’s the only flower he brought me.” She gestured to the water lily. “And again, I don’t know why he brought it. He said something about it sensing my pain or knowing I was hurt. He sounded ridiculous.” 

Vidia snickered. 

“What did you guys talk about?” Fawn queried. 

“Well, he apologized for the bets. Even though I’m starting to think they weren’t actually his fault.” Guilt crawled all over her for the acidic way she’d treated him. She’d taken his humble apology and smacked it right back in his face. 

“Did he say anything about the ball?” asked Iridessa. 

“He said he declined her invitation,” Tink glowered. “But I don’t believe it for a second.” 

Only once the words were out did she catch herself. 

She’d told them he hadn’t. 

“Wait, he  _ declined?”  _ Iridessa’s eyebrows disappeared into her hairline. 

“He said  _ no?”  _ Silvermist’s mouth dropped open comically wide. 

“Seriously? You’re surprised?” Vidia chuckled, eyes glinting. “Now there’s the first thing that’s made sense this entire conversation.” 

The sour memory of her talk with Terence struck her rather unkindly. She had lied through her teeth and told her friends he’d said yes. Then she’d gone and pointed fingers at Terence for doing the exact same thing: omitting the truth. What kind of a fairy did that make her? 

And was he even lying, she wondered? She reflected back on his wounded expression, the urgency dancing in his eyes when he’d insisted he’d said no. She’d been so speedy to shut him down. Had she acted too hastily? 

Or, had he only been so urgent because he’d just been caught in his own lie like a fly in a web? Of course he’d collect any suitable excuse to cover his tracks. 

_ “You _ said he said yes!” exclaimed Iridessa, pointing an accusing finger at her. “I specifically asked you, and you said yes.” 

“I- He-” Tinker Bell sputtered, freezing up as deep embarrassment seeped into her skin. 

“Tinker Bell!” shouted Silvermist, face clouded with anger. “You lied to us!” 

She froze. “I-I’m-” 

“You were so sure he said yes; you had us all believin it,” said a flabbergasted Rosetta. “Now you’re tellin us he said no? What is going on?” 

Tinker Bell sighed. “I . . . I . . . I flew away before I heard his answer.” 

“Why on earth would you do that?” exclaimed Rosetta. 

“I didn’t think-” 

“You what? Felt overheating jealousy that Terence was so much as  _ talking _ to another fairy? What is your problem?” 

“I-I don’t know what came over me,” Tink stammered, face flaming hot. “I was just so  _ angry _ it was Midnight. I flew away because I couldn’t bear the sight of them standing so close together, talking about the ball like that.” She wrung her hands tightly together. “I didn’t want to hear him say yes.” 

Fawn frowned dejectedly. Silvermist shook her head sadly. Iridessa looked unsure, and Vidia remained impassive and curious. 

Rosetta, however, looked at her with slightly guarded understanding. “Oh, honey . . . I can see why you did that. Of course I do. But what I don’t understand is, why’d you lie to us about it?” 

“We only wanted to help you,” said Silvermist, sounding hurt. 

“I don’t know,” Tink confessed, shoulders jolting up in anxiety. “Because I was so sure he’d said yes? He hesitated when she asked, so I made up my mind, and I wanted to be right. Because I didn’t want to admit I might be wrong and made a mistake.” She hugged her arms closer to herself, fingers firmly gripping her sides.

Then she felt flashes of aching pain on either side. She sucked in air sharply and let go quickly. She’d forgotten about the bruises on her ribs. 

“What is it?” asked Fawn, noticing her discomfort. 

“Nothing, I’m fine,” Tink assured through gritted teeth. 

Fawn was going to speak, but Rosetta seized the silence first. 

“Well, you shoulda said somethin, sugar! Because we woulda smacked some sense into ya right then and there.” She patted her shoulder for emphasis. 

“Terence was definitely telling you the truth about saying no,” said Iridessa. “He wouldn’t lie to you like that.” 

Tink’s memory flashed her back to when Terence had told her those exact words. 

“But  _ I _ had to be the one to bring it up,” she reasoned. “That has to mean he was hiding something.” 

She clung to that paper-thin thread of logic like a lifeline. 

“Or,” Fawn argued, “he didn’t bring it up because he didn’t think it was a problem since he  _ told her no.”  _

Tink laughed mirthlessly. “Well, it doesn’t matter now. I said some pretty unforgivable things to him earlier, so I doubt we’ll be speaking to each other again.” 

“Don’t be so dramatic,” Silvermist chided. “You’ll work things out. You always say mean things out of anger. We just gotta get you outta here good and healed, and then you’ll make amends.” 

Tink shook her head at her friend’s lack of understanding. “It’s not like that. It’s different this time. I broke his spirit, I went way too far. He won’t want to see me.” 

“Tinker Bell.” Silvermist grasped her hand again, and squeezed. “With a true, sincere apology, there’s hardly anything that can’t be forgiven.” 

A knock came at her door. 

“It’s me!” called a muffled voice. Ivy. 

“Come in!” 

Ivy opened the door. “Sorry, ladies, but I’m afraid visiting hours are up for today.” 

Sounds of objection came from the fairies. 

“But things were just starting to get good,” protested Vidia, remaining perched on Tink’s bed without a care in the world. 

“Come back earlier tomorrow for more time,” Ivy advised. “But for now, Tink needs her rest.” 

Vidia begrudgingly slid off her bed with an irritated groan. “Fine . . .” She looked down at Tink. “Get your beauty sleep.” 

“You sure do, sugarplum.” Rosetta ruffled her hair on her uninjured side. “We’ll see ya soon, m’kay?” 

“We’ll be back tomorrow, Tink,” Silvermist promised, smiling softly before releasing her hand. “And this isn’t over.” 

“See you guys.” Tink waved at her friends. 

Each fairy bode their goodbye, and soon Tink was left alone in the little room with nothing but her remorse to keep her company. 

Once the fairies had exited her room and flown out of the hospital, an outbreak of anger bursted from the group. 

“I can’t believe her!” bellowed Rosetta, eyes blazing. “She goes and  _ lies _ to us about Terence, and then makes things worse for herself by fighting with him? I love Tink, but if Terence doesn’t want to speak to her again, I wouldn’t blame him.” 

“Don’t say that,” said Silvermist. “I know she messed up, but I think she’s starting to-”

“What they’re fighting about is so  _ stupid!”  _ exclaimed an indignant Iridessa. “If Tink could just stop being so stubborn-”

“Some sick irony, isn’t it,” Vidia mused. “That Terence didn’t want to go to the ball with Midnight before. Well, if he wasn’t before, he certainly is now.” 

“He wouldn’t do that,” said Fawn. 

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Vidia countered. 

“You don’t even know him that well.” 

“I may not know him, but I know men. And men jump from fairy to fairy like a frog on a lily pad.” 

Iridessa stifled a snort of agreement. 

“Literally,” said Vidia. “I saw my ex boyfriend  _ jump _ onto his girlfriend at the Fall Fest last year and tackle her over on the dance floor-” 

“But you’re the one who figured out the flower is powered by love,” Silvermist refuted, almond brown eyes widening. “That has to mean something, right? They care about each other, deeply. Tink’s just not doing a very good job of showing it right now.” 

“Love?” Vidia guffawed, throwing her head back in amazement. “If  _ that _ is love, then I want no part of it.” 

“But they do love each other,” Silvermist argued weakly, but Vidia’s mind was already sealed. 

“Maybe he loves her, but she definitely doesn’t love him. You saw that flower. It was dead as disco.” 

“You don’t know that she doesn’t love him,” argued Silvermist. 

“Hun, I’ve been in love, how many times?” Rosetta asserted. “And I’ve never treated my partners the way she treats him.” 

“She really wanted to be right that badly, that she  _ lied _ to us,” Iridessa said in disbelief. 

“She was hurt and angry,” Silvermist defended. “I think we can all agree Tink doesn’t know how to handle jealousy very well-”

“It doesn’t give her the right!” exclaimed Rosetta angrily. 

“I think it can still be salvaged,” said Silvermist. 

“Guys, you know what we have to do, right?” asked Fawn, interrupting the argument. 

The fairies turned their attention to her, and a smile formed on Fawn’s freckled face. 

“It’s time to take down Midnight.” 

____

Another knock came on Tink’s door. 

“Come in,” she said dully. 

The door creaked open, and a red haired, freckled fairy flew in. 

“Hello, Tinker Bell, is it?” 

She nodded. 

“I’ve been requested to give you these.” She held up a bouquet of daisies that looked a little worse for wear. The flowers were wilted, and many of the petals were missing. 

Tink raised her eyebrows in confusion. Who would bring her these? 

“Oh . . . Thanks?” 

“An awkward young gentleman with spiky red hair and bulging blue eyes brought them by earlier, and told me to tell you they’re from the one named Terence.” 

Tink’s eyes widened, and she sat up as though she’d been electrocuted. Were  _ these  _ the flowers Rosetta was talking about, from yesterday? They couldn’t be, that would mean-

“He also told me to say that they’re from the . . . Boat crash, I think? I don’t know. It’s been a long day.” She flipped her red hair over her shoulder. 

“He said Terence dropped them when he went in to rescue you.” She paused, peering at the flowers as though they were diseased. “I’m not sure why you’d want these now, since they’re all ruined and stuff, but here they are. The one named Bobble was pretty adamant about you getting them.” 

She handed Tink the wilted bouquet, and the fairy held it delicately in her arms like glass. 

The healer raised a questioning eyebrow at Tink’s strange actions, but nonchalantly departed without another word. 

Tink’s lips were dry from being slack jawed. 

Terence had  _ rescued _ her? He’d been the one to go in and pull her from the boat, to prevent her from colliding with the boulder, possibly saving her life? 

Had Terence been with Bobble and Clank when she’d departed for the test drive, or had he shown up after the fact and saved her just in the nick of time? She was riddled with perplexity, and she needed answers. 

Terence hadn’t even  _ told _ her any of this when they’d talked! 

She’d been so ready to apologize to Bobble or Clank . . . 

And she’d been so appallingly cruel to the one who’d actually saved her. 

Her breath ghosted shakily over the sagging petals. She felt tears welling in her eyes. She clutched the flowers close to her chest, hugging them with all her might, unconcerned with what they looked like now. They meant more to her than any healthy flower ever could. 

Terence had been telling the truth. About everything. 

She had made a huge mistake. 

The flower pulsed with light again, but it diminished so quickly she did not notice. 

She no longer cared about Midnight. She knew what she needed to do. 

Tinker Bell pushed the covers off herself and slowly slid out of bed. When her feet lightly landed on the wooden floor, she drew in a deep breath to steady herself. Was she really about to do this? 

She rose to her feet, and pain slowly spread through her legs from the strain of standing. She hadn’t badly injured anything, but she had bruises and scrapes on the back of her thigh. And she hadn’t put pressure on her legs the past few days, so she needed to adjust to the feeling. 

Thoughts of Terence swum through her head. 

She couldn’t stop picturing his face when she’d yelled at him, calling him a liar. It had seared itself in her brain. Her callous words towards him taunted her temples like a mantra. 

She gripped the bouquet in one hand and gathered her water lily in the other. 

“Here we go,” she whispered. 

She tested her wings and fluttered around the room. Once she was satisfied with her flight, she exited through the narrow doorway and made her way down the thankfully empty hallway. She slipped through silent as a serpent wearing only her white hospital gown with no shoes. She squeezed her vase tight in anticipation. 

When she reached the reception of the hospital, she was relieved to find only the red-headed fairy who’d delivered the flowers working the desk. Her indifference would serve Tink well right now. She flew past reception, heart beating louder. She was almost home free when a deep voice boomed, 

“Stop! Where in the Second Star do you think you are going?” 

Ivy. 

Tink’s heart climbed to her throat. She froze, slowly turning around to face the head healer. 

Ivy had been attending to a fairy who’d just come in by the looks of it, and she neglected her patient in favor of rushing forward to Tink. She backed away, hovering at a safe distance above Ivy’s reaching hands. 

“You are  _ not _ cleared to leave this hospital! Get back down here right now-” 

“I’m sorry, Ivy.” Tink smiled sadly at her. “But I have to go.” 

Ivy shook her head. “No, you don’t. Just fly on back down here. I can draw you a nice, warm bath. Would you like that? I must insist against this, Tinker Bell. I know hospitals aren’t fun, but you’re really hurt, and . . . Your head wound still needs to be monitored, and you aren’t ready to-” 

“I’m sorry.” Tink held her flowers close. 

Without another word, she flew away. 

“Tinker Bell! No!” 

Tink drowned out the noise of Ivy’s panicked shouts, and soon she’d soared far enough away to dispel the distressing sound from her mind. Normally she’d take time to admire the twinkling stars in the ebony sky, but in her haste she didn’t glance up once. 

She flew home, and turned on a lamp. She set the vase down on her windowsill. She looked at herself in the mirror, and gasped. 

She had to hand it to Ivy; her bandages did make her look really hurt. Some of her bruises had darkened, and her deeper cuts had yet to begin healing. She looked at the bandage on her head, realizing that once the tonic wore off she’d be in for a whirlwind of pain. 

But there was no time to dwell on that now. She had a single goal in mind: Apologize to Terence. She considered changing into slightly more presentable attire for the occasion, but the evening was fastly maturing. If Terence hadn’t already left with Fairy Gary for their nightly checkups, he definitely would soon. Formality would have to wait. 

She zipped off into the night, bouquet in her hand and heart on her sleeve. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Don't pop the champagne yet. We're not outta the woods. See ya on the next one  
> -A


	12. 12

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Midnight shows her true colors. Fawn is a good friend

Terence zoomed to the dust depot, seething with anger and clenching his hands in tight fists. 

He could not believe Tinker Bell. He had swallowed his pride, saved face and been the bigger fairy when he hadn’t had to be, and  _ this _ was his reward? 

And how had she even  _ found out _ about Midnight? 

Her razor sharp words rang through his eardrums on repeat. 

_ “Two fairies who are better than anyone else I know at lying and manipulating others to get what they want. You two are perfect for each other.”  _

She had tossed his truths aside like pieces of trash. She hadn’t taken his word about the bets, and she certainly hadn’t taken his word about the ball. The indifference in her eyes spoke more than her words ever could. He meant nothing to her. 

And the thought shattered his heart to pieces. 

There had been something he’d wanted to tell Tink, something very important. Now he’d never get the chance to say how he really felt. 

He flew into the dust depot with lidded eyes and tensed up shoulders. A deep, melancholy frown tugged at the corners of his lips. 

“Terence, what happened to you?” Flint flew up to him, scanning his sorrowful stance. 

“Nothing,” Terence said flatly, flying past him. 

Stone looked up from his paperwork to peer at him. “Trouble with the Misses? I take it the visit didn’t go too well, then.” 

Terence sighed and restrained himself from facepalming. He’d told  _ one _ fairy, and now the whole depot knew? 

“She’s not my misses,” he said sourly. 

“So, is it over?” Drew asked, standing up from her seat. “Are you guys done?” 

Terence nodded slowly. 

“Oh, honey.” Drew flew over to him and placed a gentle hand on his shoulder. “I’m sorry.” 

Terence allowed the gesture, only because Drew was the one fairy out of everyone who had taken his feelings for Tink somewhat seriously. 

He lowered his head in shame, honing his gaze in on the panels of wood. “I tried to tell her. She didn’t believe me.” 

Drew surprised him by pulling him into a tight embrace. Terence froze, unsure of how to react. Then he hesitantly lifted his arms to return the hug. It was warm and comforting, and exactly what he’d needed. 

“She should have,” Drew mumbled into his shoulder. “You’re a great fairy, Terence. Remember that. Don’t let her tell you otherwise.” 

“I’m pretty sure she hates me.” Terence held onto her tighter. He hadn’t been hugged like this by anyone in a long time. He felt moisture coat his lids, so he closed his eyes to will the water away. He was acting so  _ weak _ , yet he couldn’t even help himself. His chest was bleeding with grief, and it soaked into the very seams of his shirt. 

“Hey, stop that. Look at me.” Drew pulled back from him, and placed her hands on his broad shoulders. Terence looked up at her, blinking rapidly to rid himself of the unshed tears. 

“Tinker Bell is a  _ child _ . She doesn’t deserve you. Or honestly anyone. Okay?” Drew may have been shorter, but determination was written clear as crystal across her face and towered over Terence like a tall tree. 

“You don’t know her like I do,” Terence said, unsure why he was arguing on her behalf. But a part of him wanted,  _ needed _ Drew to know that Tink was actually very sensitive, buried deep under layers of sarcasm and indifference. 

“I know enough.” Drew removed her hands from his shoulders and placed them on her hips. “And I know she’s one of those fairies that doesn’t know what she’s got until it’s gone.” 

Bolt and Stone had flown over to join the group. 

“It’s a shame, though,” said Stone, tossing a bag of dust into the air and then kicking it straight into a shelf. “After all that hard work, you never got to seal the deal with her.” 

Bolt and Flint sniggered snidely. Terence whirled around to glare at them as sharply as he could. This only fueled the flame of their mockery. 

“Think about it!” Bolt exclaimed. “She could have been the best you ever had, and now you’ll never know.”

Her malicious words had inflicted severe scars on his soul. And  _ that _ was all they were thinking about? 

“I’m not playing her games anymore,” he responded cooly, refusing to take the bait. “I’m done.” 

Stone smirked cruelly. “Looks like you’ll be playing with yourself instead.” 

The dust keepers howled with hysterical laughter, hurling their heads back and holding their stomachs. Even Drew could hardly keep herself together. 

Terence’s face burned burgundy with humiliation. His eyes twitched. 

“Would you lay off him already?” exclaimed an exasperated voice from behind. Terence turned around to see a discomposed Midnight flying towards them. 

The sparrowmen instantly halted their cackling at Midnight’s authoritative tone. Flint’s hands flew behind his back, and Stone looked embarrassed. Bolt, however, was unaffected. 

“Midnight, you better watch out for this one,” he drawled, gesturing to a fed up Terence. “He’s newly single and ready to mingle.” 

“You almost sound like you’re enjoying this,” Terence muttered. 

“We’re trying to lift your spirits!” Bolt protested, frowning. “We want you to feel better about this because you’re clearly down in the dumps. All jokes aside, Tinker Bell was terrible for you. It’s time to move  _ on.”  _

“I normally never agree with him,” said Midnight. “So take it as a token of the severity of your situation that this time I am.” 

“We’re just giving you a hard time about doing the deed because, well, you had your chance and you missed it,” said Flint. “That’s on you. And we’d say the same about any other fairy.” 

“That’s the point,” Terence growled, pointing a finger at Flint and furrowing his brows. “She wasn’t just  _ any fairy _ to me. She was special.” 

Drew frowned worriedly at him. The boys exchanged uncomfortable glances. Terence turned toward Midnight and walked closer to her. 

“You should’ve seen her eyes,” he said quietly, so only she could hear. 

Midnight frowned, listening intently. 

“When I looked at her, it was like she wasn’t even there. Like I lost her.” 

His hands started shaking, so he squeezed them together tightly in an attempt to still the involuntary motion. 

“Okay.” Midnight flew closer to him, placing a hand on his shoulder. “Okay. We are going to talk in private now.” 

“Wait, but I-” 

“Work can wait. Right now, we’re talking.” 

To his dismay, she led him away from the other fairies, who looked at him with curiosity blooming on their faces. He couldn’t stand to be in the presence of the guys for a second longer, so he virtually had no choice but to reluctantly follow her. 

She led him through a chamber and into the dust keeper lounge adorned with old art pieces and ivy hanging off the pearl white walls. The room was supplied with baby blue, threaded carpet and plush, purple, pillowy sacks of seats situated in several circles. A few other fairies occupied the room, but they paid them no mind. 

Terence and Midnight flew to the back corner of the room and settled comfortably into the seat sacks, or “bean bags” as the Clumsies called them. Midnight gazed at Terence and waited for him to speak. 

Terence nervously drummed his fingers on his thighs. “So,” he finally said, unnecessarily adjusting his acorn cap. “What do you want to talk about?” 

Midnight gave him a knowing look. “I want you to tell me what happened with Tinker Bell.” 

“I told you what happened,” Terence said levelly, struggling to keep his voice even. “And I don’t really feel like repeating myself.” 

“Terence.” Midnight sighed. “You obviously need to get this off your chest. I’m here in front of you and willing to listen. So speak.” 

“We talked, and it didn’t go well,” he said. “What else do you want to know?” 

“Can you be a little more specific?” 

“I don’t know, can you be a little less condescending?” he snapped, then reeled back at the dismal look Midnight delivered him. 

“I-I didn’t mean that,” he stuttered, but Midnight’s frown only deepened. 

“It’s fine,” she said shortly. “Continue.” 

“I went to see her at the hospital, as you probably know,” he began, relaxing back into the sack. He figured Midnight was going to keep him here for a while, so he might as well get comfortable. 

“I thought she’d be happy to see me. I know she was still upset about overhearing the bets, but that’s an easy thing to clear up so I wasn’t worried about it. At least, I thought it would be easy . . .” 

Midnight nodded in thoughtful comprehension. “So you took time out of your day to go see her, after you saved her life, and she didn’t express even the most miniscule morsel of gratitude for it? Sounds about right.” 

“She’s not usually like this,” Terence insisted, again wondering why he felt so compelled to defend her. “Something . . . Changed.” 

“What did she say to you?” 

“She asked me why I was there, and she got mad at me for bringing her favorite flower.” Terence shook his head in dismay. 

Midnight raised a skeptic eyebrow. “She has a . . . Favorite flower?” 

Terence paused. “It’s a long story.” 

“For another time,” Midnight agreed. “So what happened next?” 

“I apologized to her for the bets.” Terence fiddled with the fabric of his sleeve. 

“Oh, okay . . . Wait.” Midnight’s light brown eyes widened. “You  _ apologized?” _

“Yeah . . .” 

“Why?” she exclaimed shrilly, momentarily drawing the attention of a few other fairies. “You did nothing wrong! You know damn well those bets had nothing to do with you; it was  _ her _ fault for assuming things and holding you verbally hostage!” 

“I know, I know.” Terence suddenly found a patched up piece of carpet very interesting. “I just . . . Hate it when she’s sad, you know? It’s contagious. Tink reverberates emotion. Whatever she’s feeling, you’re gonna feel it, too. It’s just how she is.” He sighed, gazing off into space. “I wanted to see her smile again.” 

Midnight snapped her fingers at him, reeling him back to reality. “Terence,” she said firmly. “I don’t care how dazzling Tinker Bell’s smile is. Apologizing when you’re not at fault is an admission of weakness. You gave her more ammunition by doing that.” 

“How was I supposed to know she’d throw it back in my face?” he exclaimed, throwing his hands up. 

“Because that’s what fairies like her are hallmarked for; it’s what they  _ do.”  _

“It’s not like I didn’t try telling her it wasn’t my fault; I did. But she wouldn’t listen.” Terence rubbed up and down his arms distressingly. 

“Of course she didn’t,” Midnight said sympathetically. 

“Then she kept asking if there was anything else I wanted to tell her, like I was hiding something. I had nothing to hide; honest!” 

“I believe you,” Midnight comforted. “It’s okay.” 

“She called me a liar,” Terence continued. “After I poured my heart out to her, she sat there and called me a  _ liar.” _ He put his head in his hands. 

“What do you mean, you poured your heart out?” Midnight asked, frowning slightly. 

“Nothing, just . . . I told her she meant more to me than what the bets insinuated, and she  _ ignored _ it!” He lifted his head up and held a stare with Midnight, gazing into her honey brown eyes so full of compassion. “Like she didn’t even care.” 

“I hate to be the one to say this, Terence, but she probably doesn’t.” Midnight toyed with a stray piece of black hair. 

“If she had the nerve to throw you out and verbally assault you after all those kind things you said to her, after apologizing for something that wasn’t your responsibility, then it’s pretty clear that the only fairy she cares about is herself.” 

“That’s when she brought up the ball and thought I was going with you.” 

Midnight’s eyes widened, and her hands flew over her mouth as she sucked in a gasp. “How did she-” 

“I don’t know. But I’m sick of her finding things out from other fairies and then forming her own opinions before she even talks to me.” 

“Like I told you; fairies like her always have to be right, even if it comes at a price.” 

“I tried to tell her I told you no, but she wouldn’t believe that, either.” 

“That right there is the reason you shouldn’t be with her.” Midnight pointed a finger at him for emphasis. 

“I’m not going to boss you around, or tell you what to do with your life, but I’m just going to say this fairy to fairy. Being with her after everything she’s done to you would be a dreadful mistake.” 

Every bone in his body ached to argue back, to say something, anything, about how Tink was usually a kind and sweet fairy who often understood him better than he understood himself. And he almost did; until Midnight’s words fully seated themselves in his mind. 

She actually made sense. 

A lot more sense than showing up with his hands full of her favorite flower they’d found together and a sincere apology for something he hadn’t even done, just to be cast aside and sold down the river. 

He once again recalled her last words before he’d left, calling him a manipulator and saying that he and Midnight were perfect for each other. She’d spoken them with such utter arrogance and malice. He couldn’t tell Midnight. The humiliation still burned deep within his skin. 

“You know what?” he finally said, peering into Midnight’s hopeful eyes. “Actually, I think you might be right.” 

Midnight momentarily brightened, eyes twinkling knowingly. 

“You know, I don’t want to push you or anything, but . . .” She leaned forward in her chair, lips curling up in a sultry smile. “My invitation to the ball is still extended to you, if you want to accept it.” 

Terence’s lips parted in surprise, and his eyebrows rose into his hairline. 

“Only if you want, of course.” Midnight slowly placed her hands up to convey the relaxed nature of her request. 

Terence considered it. He could either not go at all, which was what he always did, or take the opportunity presenting itself right here in front of him to go with a kind, caring fairy who’d been nothing but understanding to him through this entire ordeal. 

Tink certainly didn’t like him anymore; he was growing less convinced she ever had. Surely she wouldn’t care if he went to the ball with someone else. Someone who actually cared about his feelings. And if she deserved to move on, then so did he. 

“I’d love to, Midnight,” he said kindly, returning her smile. Midnight lit up like a firefly. 

“Oh, Terence, I’m so glad! This will be  _ fun,” _ she said gleefully, grinning from ear to ear. 

“I can talk to Drew who can link me up with her tailor friend. I know it’s last minute, but I’m sure I’ll find a dress in no time.” 

“That sounds great,” chuckled Terence, still in mild disbelief of what had just happened. He still felt emotional whiplash from the radical turn of events in the past 24 hours. 

Midnight glanced behind him at the clock hanging up on the wall. Her eyes widened. 

“As much as I would love to keep talking about this, it’s almost time for you to go to night runs.” Midnight stood up, dusted herself off, and extended a hand to Terence to help him up. “You’ve gotta go.” 

“Guess the time got away from us,” Terence mused, taking her hand and standing up. After an extended moment, Midnight abruptly let go of him. 

“Yeah,” she agreed, sounding flustered, a faint blush coating her cheeks. “I guess it did.” 

_____

Tinker Bell flew as fast as she could to the dust depot, which was no easy feat considering her aching body was screaming for her to stop. It felt like her wings faltered every fifteen feet, like they had a mind of their own and knew by physical standards she should not have been traveling. 

Her heart rate climbed higher the closer she got to the depot, and she kept practicing over and over what she was going to say to Terence. Where would she even start? 

Guilt weighed heavily like bricks on her shoulders. She would be lucky if Terence even wanted to talk to her after the scene she had caused. 

She was acutely aware of all her bandages and scrapes contributing to the image of a helpless charity case just waiting to fall victim to the mockery of the dust keeper boys, but she had more pressing matters on her mind. 

Like how was she going to get Terence to believe that she’d had a change of heart after she had displayed nothing but blatant disbelief to his confessions?

After a most tiresome trip, she arrived at the depot. But adrenaline pumped through her veins, keeping her wide awake. She nervously fluttered down towards the desks of workers. Her bare toes curled in discomfort against the prickly wooden panels. She ardently scanned the perimeter of the building for any sign of Terence. She found none. 

Discouraged, she flew closer to the large array of desks. Several sparrowmen were standing in a circle sipping cups of tea, socializing. Other fairies filed paperwork, and some were writing or reading at their desks.

At the sound of Tink flying in, a fairy toward the front of the desks peered up from her book to steal a peak at her visitor. 

Once those honey brown eyes landed on her, Tink flinched in horrified recognition. She knew those eyes anywhere. It was Midnight. 

She backed away, immediately wanting to abort the mission. Heat flooded her cheeks, and her legs shook unsteadily beneath her at the paralyzing thought of Midnight seeing her in this state. Why hadn’t she considered this possibility before? Why had she come here? She needed to go, she needed to go  _ now _ -

“Tinker Bell?” The looming curiosity evident in Midnight’s tone caused her to back up further. Midnight paid no mind to her apprehension, flying closer right up in her space. Tink blinked owlishly, frozen in fear. 

“You look lost,” said Midnight, scanning her up and down. Her lips formed the smallest smirk at the sight of her scrapes. “Terence wasn’t kidding, you really took a plunge. In more ways than one.” 

Tink glowered, brows furrowing at the thought of Terence relaying her private information to Midnight. Though, to be fair, he did work with her. And he must have had some sort of reason as to why he left work to visit her in the hospital. She decided to let it go for now. 

“Oh, you poor little pixie,” Midnight cooed, walking around to eye her injuries. Tink was slack jawed, and incapable of speech. She planted her feet firmly on the floor to keep from faltering again, closely observing her opponent. 

Midnight really was a beautiful fairy, with tanned, caramel skin, amber brown eyes, and silky, sleek hair black as the midnight sky. Hence her name. She held herself confidently, towering over her intimidatingly tall. 

“What happened to you?” she asked in that same patronizing tone. 

Tink narrowed her eyes in disdain. “That’s none of your business.” 

“Oh, skip the stubborn act.” Midnight waved her hand in annoyance. “I actually already know what happened. I just wanted to hear your side of the events. Although, now that I think about it, I’m not sure I’d believe you considering how much you like to play make-believe.” 

Tink raised an eyebrow, folding her arms defensively over her chest. “What are you talking about?” 

Midnight sneered at her. 

“You know what, never mind.” Tink shook her head in exasperation. “I don’t really care.” 

She attempted to move past Midnight, but the taller fairy stuck a slim arm out to stop her. 

“And just where do you think you’re going looking like that?” she asked condescendingly. 

Affronted, Tink took a step back. “I’m looking for someone,” she scowled. “So, if you don’t mind-” 

“Are you looking for Terence?” 

Tink’s eyes widened in spite of herself. “I-Is he here?” she asked, voice sounding very small. 

The smirk on Midnight’s face grew ever so slightly. But before Tink could question her, it shifted to a mixture of sadness and scorn. 

“I’m so sorry, but he’s not.” Midnight pretended to appear thoughtful for a moment. “Actually, if I’m not mistaken, you just missed him.” 

Tink’s eyes widened. She took a step back, muscles tightening. “What?” 

“Yeah. He just left with Fairy Gary for their night rounds.” 

Tink gasped. Night rounds were no joke. They changed every week; Terence could be anywhere. 

“If you had gotten here  _ any _ earlier . . .” A cruel glint glistened in Midnight’s eyes, and she shook her head in mock disapproval. “But alas. You’re a tinker fairy, after all. I know timing and common sense aren’t really your strongest suits.” 

“Say all you want about me, see if I care,” Tinker Bell growled, raising a shaking fist. “But don’t you  _ dare _ insult my talent.” 

Midnight laughed heartily. “How could I not, when you make it so easy?” 

Suddenly a jolt of pain throbbed mercilessly in her head, causing her to gasp. Her hands flew to cradle her head. 

Midnight reeled back, surprised. “Did I really hurt you that bad? I honestly thought you had a little tougher skin than that.” 

Scalding hot anger sizzled at the surface of her skin. “Can you just tell him I came by? It’s really important.” 

That same smirk crept back up on Midnight’s face. “Of course I will, Tinker Bell.” 

Tink studied her in suspicion. 

“But, I have to ask.” Midnight paused and played with her hair. “This doesn’t have anything to do with the ball, does it?” 

Tink did not care to discuss with Midnight whether it did or did not have anything to do with the ball. 

“Why?” she asked, stomach stirring with stress. 

Midnight gave her a pitying glance. “Oh, darling . . . He didn’t tell you?” 

Her heart beat upticked. “Tell me what?” 

The dust keeper fairy sighed, smiling softly. “He’s going to the ball with me now. Not you.” 

Her blood ran cold. 

Terence had  _ lied _ to her? All those pleads and protests that had sounded so genuine, so sincere, had meant  _ nothing? _

“O-Oh. Right. I knew that. O-Of course I knew that. I mean, I was just going to-” Tink clammed up, humiliation consuming her entirely. 

“What was that?” Midnight asked pleasantly. “I can’t understand you.” 

“N-Nothing, I’m just- I’m gonna go.” Tink slowly backed away, tears pooling at the pits of her eyes. She could not stay here another instant. 

“Do you still want me to tell him you came by?” Midnight asked, sounding positively delighted. 

“No.” Tink turned around and departed the depot as dauntlessly as she could. 

Her shoulders shook with silent sobs, and she buried her face in her hands as soon as she was out of sight of Midnight’s prying eyes. Hot tears streamed down her face as she hovered in midair, slowly descending to the ground. This was the last place she wanted to fall apart, but her body refused to listen to her mind’s command to quiet down. She gasped for breath between her fingers, wings weakly fluttering down as she wept. She landed on the ground with a hard thud, and a wave of pain rippled through her legs. 

The last thing she wanted was for anyone to see her like this. 

“Tink?” 

Go figure. 

She startled, whipping her head around to locate the source of the voice. The moon was invisible tonight, and the area was dimly lit, so she was having considerable trouble finding the culprit. 

“Tink!” 

Fawn ran up to her, a small squirrel hot on her tail. Her eyes widened in alarm at the sight of her friend in her hospital gown and fresh bandages, shaking like a leaf. Tink backed away slowly, tensing up. 

Fawn approached her cautiously like she would a wounded animal. 

“What are you doing out here?” The question was carefully calm. 

“I was . . . Wanting some fresh air. It gets so  _ stuffy _ in there-” 

“Tink, I’m not playing around right now,” Fawn said levelly. “ _ What _ are you doing out here?” 

She peered closer at the fairy, and noticed her red-rimmed eyes and tear-stained cheeks. Her eyes softened in concern. “Did something happen?” she asked, gentler this time. 

Fresh tears gathered at Tink’s eyes. Her chin wobbled in a weak attempt to steady herself. “I-I-” But that was all she managed to speak before a sob overtook her body. Her face crumpled as she began to cry again. She instantly covered herself, utterly humiliated that she couldn’t keep herself together enough to answer a simple  _ question _ . 

“Hey, hey, it’s okay, come here.” Fawn pulled her distressed friend into a loving embrace. Tink gripped her arms tightly, tears trickling down her face and soaking Fawn’s shoulder. 

Fawn held her for several silent minutes. 

When Tink looked back up at her friend, worried eyes swum in her vision. Instantly ashamed of herself for acting so weak, she stepped out of Fawn’s hold and backed away. 

“I came to see Terence, b-because I had to tell him I was sorry, because  _ I _ was the one who screwed up, it was me, a-and-” 

“Whoa, hold on. Slow down. Take a deep breath,” Fawn instructed. 

Tink inhaled and released a shaky breath. 

Fawn frowned, not entirely satisfied but figured that was the best she was going to get. 

“Good. Now walk me through it.” 

Tink was unable to hold Fawn’s intense stare for any longer. Her eyes landed on the grass. 

“It’s all my fault,” she said hoarsely. 

“What’s all your fault?” 

“Terence, this,  _ everything.” _ Tinker Bell gestured to herself. “It’s my fault I ended up like this; I was the one who wanted to prove to Terence I could do the boat all by myself. That I didn’t need him. That’s why I went alone.” She put a hand over her trembling lips to keep from crying. 

Fawn sighed, shaking her head. “I figured as much. Why didn’t you tell me?”

“B-Because I would have looked so  _ stupid.” _ Tink squeezed her eyes shut as a couple more tears leaked out. “And I wasn’t ready to admit I was wrong.” 

“Okay, that’s honest,” Fawn conceded. “Now what happened with Terence? Do you feel remorseful for the way you treated him?” 

“Yes,” Tink breathed. “So much. I feel horrible, Fawn.” 

“All you can do is apologize and ask for forgiveness.” 

“I-I’m getting to that.” Tink made eye contact once again with her friend. “So, you know those flowers Rosetta was talking about? Turns out, he  _ did _ try to give them to me. The same time I was taking the Pixie Dust Express.” 

Fawn’s eyes widened in understanding. “Oh, okay. That makes more sense.” 

“But he never gave them to me . . . Because he showed up just in time to save my life.” 

Fawn nodded. “That was brave of him, wasn’t it?” 

Tink gasped, shock flooding her system. “Wait . . . You  _ knew?”  _

Fawn chuckled. “Of course we knew. Clank and Bobble told us everything. The only thing they didn’t mention was the flowers. We just figured he’d tell you himself.” 

“Well, he didn’t,” Tink said softly, suddenly realizing something. “Because he cared more about making things right with me than looking good. And I ruined it.” 

“Don’t beat yourself up,” Fawn scolded. “I told you, all you have to do is tell him how you feel and apologize.” 

“I tried,” Tink insisted. “But when I got to the dust depot, he’d already gone.” 

“So? Just talk to him tomorrow. I can even swing by and tell him you want to see him.” 

“Fawn, you don’t understand.” Tink looked up at the sky, sniffing loudly. “I talked to Midnight.” 

“Oh, how I  _ hate _ that fairy,” Fawn seethed. “That prejudiced try-hard insulted my talent.” 

“She insulted my talent, too!” 

“Figures,” Fawn scoffed. 

“Well, she told me that she and Terence  _ were _ going to the ball together.” 

Fawn’s face flooded with confusion. “Wait . . . What?”

“They’re going to the ball together after all. He lied about it,” Tink said in casual disbelief to mask the deafening hurt clawing deep inside her. 

Fawn lifted an eyebrow. “Something’s not adding up here,” she speculated. “Because Terence definitely wouldn’t lie about that. Especially not to you.” 

“That’s what I used to think,” she said humorlessly. And frankly, she was sick of people saying that to her. 

“We’re gonna get to the bottom of this,” Fawn told her. 

Cast with a sudden dizzy spell, Tinker Bell swayed and stumbled on her feet. She grasped onto Fawn’s arm for support, nearly falling down. 

“Whoa, whoa, easy, please don’t faint on me.” Fawn held her up, and peered into her eyes clouded with exhaustion. 

Tinker Bell slumped forward, eyes rolling closed. 

“Hey, hey, stay with me!” Fawn shook her urgently. Tink’s eyes blinked open, but she still needed support in standing. 

“I’m taking you back to the hospital now.” 

“What?” Tink exclaimed indignantly. “No! I just got out!” 

“And you’re going back in. You can hardly stand.” 

As if to emphasize her point, Tink’s head throbbed in pain again. 

“Ow,” she hissed. 

“We’re going back,” Fawn decided with a deadpan expression. 

“But I don’t-” 

“Can you fly?” 

Tink huffed frustratedly. “Yes, I can fly,” she answered, casting Fawn a glare. 

“Okay. But you’re holding onto me so you don’t fall.” 

Tink rolled her eyes. Fawn’s concern slid off her like water off a duck’s back. 

“I don’t need your-  _ Whoa!” _ Fawn pulled her up with surprising strength, and the two fairies soared high into the sky, Fawn gripping Tink’s hand so tightly she could not let go. 

“Squeeze my hand tighter, why don’t you!” 

On their flight back, all Tink could focus on was the bitter, biting feeling of Terence’s blatant betrayal. She realized he hadn’t cared for her at all. He’d only wanted to find a fairy to warm his bed. And it looked like he’d finally succeeded. 

Once they arrived back at the hospital, Fawn led her to the reception desk. 

The red-head fairy from earlier looked up at them, looking slightly interested but still very bored. 

“This one ran away,” Fawn explained. 

“One second,” said the healing fairy in that same monotonous voice. “I’ll go get the head healer.” 

She rose from her seat and flew back down the hallway. 

“Ivy!” she called. “That tinker fairy you’ve been yelling about nonstop is back.” 

“Oh, thank goodness!” 

Ivy and the red-head re-emerged into view. Tink glared at Fawn for doing this to her, but Fawn only smiled apologetically. 

“Tinker Bell, you have got  _ some _ nerve,” Ivy said firmly, furrowing her brows and planting her hands on her hips. 

“Running away like that was very dangerous and  _ very _ stupid. You could have gotten into a lot of trouble. You’re lucky your friend had enough sense to bring you back.” 

Tinker Bell looked down to the ground, shame piling up higher. “I’m sorry, Ivy.” 

Ivy’s stature softened at the dejected look on Tink’s face. It wasn’t hard to deduce that the fairy had been through an ordeal. 

“I was worried sick about you,” she said quietly. “Now, let’s get you some tonic and get you to bed. It’s late.” 

Tink sighed and looked at Fawn. “Thanks,” she muttered. 

Fawn smiled warmly. “No problem. You need to heal, and I wasn’t about to let you fly off into the night like that. You were in a right state. Now, I’ll see you tomorrow, okay?” She pulled her friend in for one last hug. Tink reluctantly returned it. 

She watched Fawn fly away, then followed Ivy back down the hallway. As defeated as she felt, she was at least grateful to finally have something for her aching head. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! Hope you enjoyed the chapter and I'll see ya on the next one  
> -A


	13. 13

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Tink's friends do a little sleuthing of their own. Blink and you miss it Aladdin reference
> 
> Wanted to shout out a guest on ffn who wrote me a review talking about how terrible terences friends are. You inspired the beginning of this chapter!

“So, Terence.” Stone swirled around the rotating shelves holding sacks of pixie dust, placing them one by one on the racks. Bolt, Flint, and Drew sat nearby shuffling paperwork. 

“The ball’s right around the corner, and you’re fresh without a date. What are you going to do?” 

Terence sighed wearily, placing down the leaf he was writing on and glanced up at his coworker. 

“Nothing.” He resumed writing. 

“Nothing?” Stone balked. 

“I think someone’s still sore over Tinker Bell,” Flint taunted, elbowing Bolt in the side. Bolt openly smirked at him. 

“With that body, I would be, too. Believe me.” 

Stone and Bolt snickered. 

Terence glowered at the appalling words, pencil quaking in his palm. He clenched his jaw in carefully contained aggravation. 

“Look at him; his face says it all.” Stone shook his head bemusedly. 

“Guess it’s gonna be awhile before you move on,” said Flint with mock sadness. 

_“If_ you move on,” added Bolt. 

“Poor Terence, all hung up on the one fairy he can’t have,” teased Stone. 

“Could you _quit_ it?” Terence slammed down his pencil on top of the leaf, startling the guys into silence. 

“I don’t need your unhelpful commentary on my feelings, so could you just do everyone a favor and stop talking?” 

He removed his acorn cap and ran a frustrated hand through his blonde hair. “And don’t go pretending like you know anything about how I feel when you clearly don’t.” He shoved his acorn cap back on his head. 

Bolt looked uncomfortable, slowly placing a sack of dust on the shelf. “We’re just kidding, you don’t have to-” 

“Well, it isn’t funny,” Terence growled, standing up and barring his hands into fists. “And you wonder why you can’t get girlfriends . . . I’m gonna let you in on a little secret. No one wants a guy that just stands around here making disgusting, disrespectful comments about fairies all day.” 

“They don’t disrespect me,” Drew piped up, long brown hair cascading down her back as she swiveled around in her chair. 

Terence rolled his eyes. 

“That’s because you’re one of us,” said Stone. 

“Yeah, Drew’s one of the guys,” Flint added. “She doesn’t count.” 

Terence looked at Drew, frowning. “But doesn’t it bother you a little bit that they insult practically every girl in Pixie Hollow?” 

Drew eyed the boys, then shrugged noncommittally. “Not really.” 

The boys laughed zealously, nudging her on the shoulder. 

“That’s our girl,” said Flint proudly. “Besides, Terence over here is just sensitive because he can’t move on from his _lover.”_ He made kissy noises and puckered his lips, batting his eyes in mock flirtation. 

Terence white-knuckled the edges of the desk. 

“He’ll probably be stuck on her forever,” mused Stone. “Although everybody knows it’s not even official until you-” 

“You’re saying I can’t move on?” Terence walked forward towards him, narrowing his eyes dangerously. “I _absolutely_ can move on.” 

“Oh yeah?” Bolt challenged, flying up to him. “How?” 

“Not that it’s any of your business,” Terence scowled, “but I happen to be going to the ball. With another fairy.” 

Drew gasped, green eyes widening. 

Bolt reeled back, mouth opening in shock. 

Stone and Flint looked mildly impressed. 

“With whom?” Drew asked. 

“Let me guess,” said Flint. “You’re going with Rosemary. She was _all_ over you at the Spring Soiree, remember?” 

Terence wished he hadn’t. 

Though he never normally attended dances, he liked the Spring Soiree because it was informal and did not include the drama of finding a date. And the food happened to be delicious. 

“No,” he responded, hesitating to tell them who it was. He knew they’d never let him live it down, but he’d brought it up in his quest to prove them wrong, so he had to own it. 

“It’s Midnight.” 

All three boys gasped. 

_“What?”_ exclaimed Drew. 

“Wow, Terence,” applauded Stone. “I honestly didn’t think you had it in you. She’s been eyeing you for months, so props to you for finally noticing.” 

Terence lifted an eyebrow in confusion. “She has?” 

“Yes.” Stone nodded. 

“Well, it’s not like that. We’re just going as friends.” 

“Sure you are,” taunted Flint. “Just like you and Tinker Bell were _just friends_ , remember?” 

Terence clenched his jaw, but he couldn’t really argue. 

“I didn’t know you liked Midnight,” said Drew, shell shocked. 

Terence shook his head. “Again, I don’t _like_ her.” He paused at their skeptical faces. “I mean, I do _like_ her, as a fairy, but not-” He sighed. “You know what I mean. I shouldn’t have to explain myself to you!” 

“You did that all on your own, buddy,” said Stone, giving him a sympathetic clap on the back. Terence glared at him. 

“Midnight’s gorgeous,” marveled Flint. “You’re one lucky fairy to be going with her.” 

“He’s gonna have a _real_ good night at the ball, that’s for sure,” drawled Bolt, eliciting cackles from the group. 

“I’m sure Tinker Bell’s gonna be just ecstatic at the sight of the two of you getting it on-” 

“Would you _stop_ it already?” Terence exclaimed, throwing his hands up. “So what if Midnight likes me? You were the ones telling me I needed to move on, so I’m moving on. What is your _problem?”_

“I don’t want to deal with dust keeper drama,” complained Drew, frowning worriedly. “Nothing good can come of dating someone in your own guild, especially one as tight-knit as ours. If you two do get together and I have to listen to your arguments and petty fighting all the time, I’m quitting.” 

“We’re not dating,” Terence defended hotly. “Why does my love life always have to be the main subject of conversation around here? Can’t you guys honestly find anything more interesting to talk about?” 

“You and Tink have been dancing around each other for years,” said Drew. “When you guys finally started dating we thought that was it. We didn’t expect it to blow up so quickly.” 

“Trust me, neither did I,” Terence scowled. “But Midnight was right. She never cared about me at all.” 

“She came and visited you all the time. Brought you your favorite snacks. Kept you company while you did restocks.” Drew combed through her long, brown locks. “That has to mean something.” 

Terence considered her words. “Maybe she cared then,” he conceded. “But she definitely doesn’t now.” His shoulders hunched over, and his eyes slid to the ground. 

“Maybe Midnight was right. Maybe she _was_ just trying to get out of the relationship because she didn’t want to be with me.” 

“She really thought all that would be easier than just telling you?” queried Flint. 

“I don’t know,” said Drew. “Based on what you told me, her anger seemed pretty genuine. She must have been upset about something . . . Honestly, I wouldn’t be surprised if this whole thing was just some big misunderstanding.” 

“That’s what I thought it was,” explained Terence. “But no matter what I said, she wouldn't listen.” 

“I was doing some thinking,” Drew said quickly. “Look, I know I said some things about her yesterday, but . .” She stood up and looked at him deep in the eye. 

“She was probably scared, Terence.” 

The sparrowman blinked in surprise. 

“And she’s so young. She’s never dealt with this before. She must have felt so threatened at the idea of her feelings not being returned, that she attacked you in order to protect herself.” 

Terence’s eyes widened, and his gaze softened. He hadn’t even considered that. 

“But I don’t want you to worry about that now,” she added, swiftly sensing his shift of posture. “Because that’s no excuse. Now you have a new date with a beautiful, _mature_ fairy who treats you way better than Tink ever did. You should be happy!” 

For some reason, Terence couldn’t even bring himself to smile. 

“C’mon, Terence,” Drew protested. “That brooding, glum look sure isn’t doing you any favors.” 

Bolt’s eyes sparkled sadistically. “I can think of a few favors he could grant Tinker Bell.” 

Stone and Flint laughed despicably. Drew shook her head in disgust. 

Terence pressed his nails so tightly into the palms of his hand he left crescent moon indents deep in the calloused skin. White-hot anger bubbled in his blood. He saw red, and in a flash he had run up to Bolt and grabbed him aggressively by his collar, yanking the shorter man up so he was eye level. 

Bolt’s eyes widened in fear. 

“Don’t you _dare_ talk about her that way,” he hissed. 

“Put me down!” 

“I will never, ever see her like that. Can you get that through your thick skull? Huh? Can you?” 

Terence towered over him, shaking with fury. 

“This is the last time I take this from you guys. I’m done.” 

He harshly shoved Bolt away from him. 

“You’re done?” Bolt echoed, chuckling in amused disbelief. “Okay, whatever you say. It’s not like we work together or anything.” 

Stone snickered. 

Terence pinned his arms to his sides stiff as a board to prevent himself from launching at the sparrowman again. 

“I don’t care,” he enunciated slowly. “Because if I hear you talking about her like that one more time, I swear I’ll-”

Bolt laughed out loud. “You’ll what?” He stepped closer to the sparrowman. “You’ll hit me?” 

Terence tensed up. 

“Huh? Is that what you’re gonna do?” He chuckled mirthlessly. His eyes held no fear. “You know what I think?” 

He placed his finger on his chin, rubbing it back and forth while he pretended to philosophize. 

“You talk a big game, with nothing to back it up. You wouldn’t have the wings to actually hit me.” 

Another step closer. “You’re a coward. That’s all you are.” 

Terence grabbed his shoulder, holding him close. “You sure about that?” he snarled. 

Bolt gulped. 

“Hey, can you guys break it up now?” Stone asked awkwardly. “This is getting a little-” 

“More sure than the dust on my wings,” Bolt seethed, continuing his assault. “In fact, if I remember, you couldn’t even get Tinker Bell to go to the ball on your own. Didn’t Drew have to do that for you?” 

“Don’t bring me into this,” Drew pleaded. 

“Drew didn’t force me to do anything,” said Terence, roughly letting go of him. “And what do you care? At least I have a date. Who are you going with?” 

“Uh, we’re actually going stag,” Flint piped up. 

Terence raised his eyebrows at Bolt. “I’m sure you’re pleased with that arrangement, aren’t you?” 

Bolt silently fumed at him before speaking. “At least I don’t fly around begging for somebody to love me. Maybe you’ll learn to be like us someday. Fairies like you are always the first to be taken advantage of.” 

“The only thing you should take advantage of is the opportunity to fly away before I sock you square in the jaw.” 

“That’s a good offer, Bolt,” said Flint. “I’d take it if I were you.” 

Completely unaffected, Bolt motioned with his hand. 

“Go on,” he taunted. “I’d like to see you try.”

Terence stepped closer to him. Bolt did not recede. 

“Terence, stop it,” Drew called anxiously. “You don’t have to do this.” 

“Go ahead, hit me.” 

Terence’s fists shook at his sides. He stood still. 

“You don’t have the wings,” Bolt sneered. “I knew it.” 

“I’m not stooping down to your level,” Terence said through his teeth. “I’m above that.” 

“Coward. You’re pathetic.” 

“Talking about fairies like they’re toys . . . Now _that’s_ pathetic.” 

“At least I own what I say; you hide behind this thin veil of divine virtue, pretending that you’re better than everybody else, but you’re not fooling anyone. I know your true intentions.” He smirked smugly. 

“And what might those be?” 

“You would have enjoyed every bit as much as I will the look on her face when I finally get her alone and bend her over a-” 

SMACK. 

Terence punched him square across the face, and the harsh contact of his calloused fist against Bolt’s freckled nose rang deep throughout the depot and elicited gasps of fright from their audience. 

Terence pulled back his throbbing hand, shaking it in shock. 

“Terence!” cried Drew angrily, flying up from behind. She locked her arms around his muscular figure, pulling him back. 

Bolt cradled his injured nose, doubled over in agony. “You did it,” he said, incredulous. “You actually did it.” 

“And I’ll do it again!” Terence shouted, pushing Drew off him none too gently. 

Stone and Flint immediately flew to Bolt’s aid. 

“Hey, cool down,” Stone commanded coldly to Terence. Then he peered at his friend, who was hissing in pain and breathing through his mouth. 

“Let me see it.” 

“Fly off!” 

“Let me see it.” 

Bolt scowled at him and removed his hands. Stone recoiled in horror at the massive amount of blood flowing from his nostrils and dripping down his chin like a river. 

“That is definitely broken.” 

“Not gonna lie, though, you kinda asked for it,” said Flint. Bolt glared at him scathingly. 

“Terence,” Drew growled again, flying into his line of sight. “What the hell was that?” 

“He got what was coming,” he said simply. 

“You’re gonna pay for that,” Bolt spat. 

“You want me to give you a black eye, too? That nose is looking a little lonely,” Terence challenged, barring his fists as blinding anger coursed through him. He thought he’d feel satisfied after punching the fairy, but he didn’t. 

Bolt lunged for him, but Flint and Stone held him back. 

“Terence, that is _enough.”_ Drew yanked on his arm, turning him with unexpected strength to face her. 

“Did you not hear what he said?” Terence asked incredulously. 

“I don’t care what he said; you do not hit other fairies!” 

“You’re defending him?” Terence shook his head, and pulled his arm out of her grasp. He glared daggers at her, scoffing. “Why am I not surprised.” 

He walked past her and fluttered his wings to take off from the scene before it could deteriorate any further. 

“Terence, wait!” 

“Leave me alone,” he growled. He flew away without another word, mind reeling. 

_____

“I can’t wait to see her,” gushed Iridessa. She flew along with Vidia, Fawn, Rosetta, and Silvermist to the hospital, backs baking to a cisp under the sweltering summer sun. It was finally Tink’s discharge date. 

“She’s gonna be so excited!” agreed Fawn. 

“And she’ll love the surprise we planned for her,” said Rosetta. “Nothin cheers a fairy up more than shoppin!” 

“You mean, nothing cheers _you_ up more,” Vidia corrected. “I’ll be honest here, I’m not sure she’s gonna be on board with all this after the whole Terence fiasco.” 

“Nonsense,” said Rosetta, ginger curls bouncing as she flew. "Once she sees it, she'll change her mind." 

“I don’t know,” Fawn said hesitantly. Rosetta cocked an eyebrow. 

“You didn’t see her the other night,” the animal fairy continued. “She was a wreck. She could hardly speak she was so upset.” 

“I know all this Terence stuff is fresh in her mind,” said Silvermist, “but she loves dances, and she’s still going to want to go. With or without a date." 

"It's not about having a date," argued Fawn. "It's about Terence." 

“She doesn't need Terence to have fun at the ball; she has us!" protested Iridessa. 

“I know, but . . .” Fawn sighed. “She told me that Terence and Midnight _are_ going to the ball together.” 

“Wait a minute, wait a minute.” Iridessa squinted her eyes shut, rubbing her temples, trying to make sense of the situation. _“What?”_

"Called it," said Vidia. 

"No, I mean she made it sound like he'd been going with her all along," said Fawn. 

“You’re kiddin,” gasped Rosetta. 

“I’m not. She thinks he lied to her about saying no, but . . . I still feel like we’re missing something.” 

“So first he was going with her, then he wasn’t, and now he is again?” asked Silvermist. “I can’t keep up.” 

“Me neither,” said Iridessa. “Now I don’t know what to believe.” 

"See?" Fawn frowned, gesturing with her hands. "It doesn't make any _sense."_

“So he _did_ lie to her about going?” confirmed Silvermist. 

“I told you, I don’t know,” said Fawn frustratedly. “That’s what Tink thinks, though I can’t see him doing that to her.” 

“He probably didn’t want to hurt her feelings, bless his heart,” said Rosetta. “But I still don’t understand why he didn't tell her. She’d find out eventually.” 

“Wait a second . . . Midnight could have manipulated him into going to the ball with her.” Fawn narrowed her eyes suspiciously, gears beginning to turn in her head. 

“I’d believe that,” said Silvermist. 

"Why would she do that?" asked Iridessa. 

“Had no idea Terence was such a hot ticket for everybody,” Vidia mused. 

“Because for whatever reason, she has it out for Tink,” glowered Fawn. “I told you I want to take her down.” 

“Don’t be rash,” said Rosetta. “For all we know, Midnight could just want to go with him as a friend, nothin more.” 

“I don’t think it’s a coincidence Midnight asked him to the ball as soon as she found out he and Tink were fighting,” Fawn said darkly. “It all seems very plotted.” 

“But what could Midnight have against Tink? They hardly know each other,” wondered Iridessa. 

"Exactly! They don't know each other. So what would they have in common besides Terence?" 

"I remember that one day at the dust depot before our picnic, when Tink was upset about Midnight teasin her." Rosetta frowned thoughtfully. "That fairy wound her up real quick." 

"No wonder she was so mad," said Iridessa. "She was teasing her about Terence because she wanted him for herself!" 

“That actually makes sense,” said Vidia. “And something about Midnight has always rubbed me the wrong way, so I have no problem with this plan.” 

“But there's nothin we can do about it now," Rosetta grimly reminded them. 

“We can talk about this later,” said Silvermist, gesturing to the hospital up ahead. “Because we’re here.” 

The fairies flew inside and approached the reception desk. 

The same red-headed fairy that Fawn had met before was hunched over a pile of paperwork. She went by the name of Autumn according to a very obviously enchanted Bobble. 

“Hi,” greeted Fawn, already aware of the healer fairy’s unfriendly attitude. 

Autumn looked up, and she sighed at the crowd of eager fairies standing around her desk, bursting with energy. 

“What is it?” she asked flatly. 

Rosetta recoiled at her rudeness. “Um, we’re here to get Tinker Bell. It’s her release date.” 

Autumn only stared blankly. 

“The one I brought back the other night,” Fawn clarified. 

After a delay, Autumn nodded in recognition. “Oh, right. The loud one. Let me go check.” She flew away. 

“Well, isn’t she just a little ball of sunshine,” Rosetta remarked. 

“She certainly could never be a light fairy,” said Iridessa. 

Autumn returned wearing her same bored expression. “She’s changing back into her dress. If you can call that a dress . . .” 

“I think I’ve finally met my match,” said an awestruck Vidia. 

“She’ll be just a second.” 

The fairies nodded, standing in a circle around her desk and chatting noisily in excited tones. After a couple moments, Autumn sighed again and looked up at them. 

“Uh, do you mind? Some of us have important things to do.” 

“Oh! Sorry.” Silvermist backed away. But Vidia stepped closer to her, astounded. 

“Excuse me? Just exactly who do you think you’re talking to?” 

Autumn’s eyes widened at her boldness, but she quickly composed herself. “This is my workspace. You are hovering around me like a herd of honeybees, buzzing so loud I can’t even concentrate. So why don't you go hop on over to another flower." 

“I’ll give you something to concentrate on, you little-” 

“Don’t mind her!” Silvermist exclaimed. She and Fawn grabbed onto Vidia’s arms and pulled her away. 

"Let go of me!" Vidia feistily freed herself from their grip. 

“We’re sorry to disturb you,” Fawn apologized. “We’ll go wait over there.” 

But there was no need, for moments later Tinker Bell flew forward with Ivy at her side, carrying a bag of bandages. 

Instead of her white gown she was once again clothed in her signature green dress and slippers with cotton balls. Her golden hair was pulled back up in a bun, and she wore a happy smile. 

“Hey, Tink!” exclaimed Silvermist. 

"Hi, guys!" 

Ivy handed Tinker Bell the bag. “This should be enough to last you the next couple weeks. Be sure to change them every two to three days,” she instructed. 

Tink nodded. “I will.” 

Ivy pulled her into an embrace. “Think I’ve grown fond of you, kid.” She placed her hands on Tinker Bell’s taller shoulders, looking at her seriously. “Now I hope I never have to see you again.” 

She chuckled. “I’m gonna miss you, Ivy. Thanks for everything.” 

“Be good.” Ivy let go of her. “And stay out of trouble!” 

Tink waved the healer fairy goodbye, and she flew off back down the hallway where she’d come from. 

Once Ivy was gone the fairies rushed up to her enthusiastically. 

“I’m so glad you’re out!” squealed Iridessa excitedly. 

“You look so much better, and now you’ve got your freedom back!” said Fawn. 

Tink felt her heart swell from the love and affection. 

Autumn looked up and cast them a nasty glare. Silvermist caught her eye. 

“Sorry, we’ll just . . . Be over here.” The herd migrated away from the desk toward the waiting area. 

“It’s good to see you in normal clothes again,” said Silvermist joyfully. 

“I actually think white suits you,” commented Iridessa. “You should wear it more often. Just maybe more fashionable garments next time.” 

Tink chuckled. "I'm glad to have seen the last of that thing. It was so uncomfortable." 

“Speakin of fashion . . .” Rosetta grinned. “We got a surprise for ya!” 

“Really? What is it?” Tink asked, playing off her friend’s excitement. Maybe she could get them to tell her what it was before they got there. 

“There’s only one way to find out, darlin,” Rosetta chortled. “No more hints for you!" 

The pack of fairies departed the hospital with one last fleeting glance at the grumpy Autumn before taking off high into the sky. 

“Your head feeling any better?” Fawn asked her as they flew. 

“Much.” Tink nodded, pleased with the progress she was making on her recovery. 

"How much longer do you have to wear those bandages?" Iridessa asked. 

"For like a week." 

"That's not bad . . ." 

The fairies conversed pleasantly during their trip, asking Tink about her stay and gushing over how excited they were to take her to her first real meal. But all Tink could think about was how warm, comforting, and cozy her own bed was going to feel. 

"Here we are," said Rosetta once they arrived at their destination. Tink’s eyes widened in immediate recognition. They were at the tailor station. 

“Wait, guys . . .” She spun to face her friends. “What is going on?” 

Rosetta cast a sheepish glance to Iridessa. 

“I already told you, I’m not going to the ball,” Tink insisted. She felt touched that her friends had thought of her, but the mere possibility of seeing Terence with Midnight was too painful to ponder. 

“You haven’t even seen the surprise yet; come on!” Iridessa pleaded. 

Tink shook her head wistfully. “I’m sorry, but I can’t.” 

Fawn cast them a look that said _I told you so_. 

Rosetta frowned. “We just want to show you somethin real quick, okay? That’s all.” 

“Really, I appreciate it, but I don’t want to see it.” Tink placed her hands up. 

“If you don’t like it, then we won’t bring it up again,” said Iridessa. “We promise.” 

Tink noticed the hope shimmering in their eyes. She sighed in resignation, unable to resist. “Alright, fine.” 

Rosetta clapped her hands in accomplishment. “Great! Then follow us!” 

The fairies flew inside the tailor station, which was hustling and bustling with active commotion. Since the Summer Ball was only a few short days away, they had every tailor fairy on deck rushing around, with large piles of dresses stacked on their shoulders and hands full of equipment. 

Tinker Bell looked around at the shop. Racks of dresses were situated on either side of the large room, some considerably more organized than others, of various colors and sizes. She eyed a particularly appealing red piece bedazzled with silver sequins and a wide, short skirt that fanned out from the tight waist. 

“Wow,” she breathed. 

A tan fairy that Tink did not recognize flew forward to greet them, carrying a pile of dresses. She had dirty blonde hair pulled up in a high ponytail, and side bangs that hid one of her hazel eyes. She placed the dresses down at the desk, and smiled joyfully. 

“Hey, guys!” she said cheerily. 

“Fly with you, Cotton,” Fawn said pleasantly. “How are you holding up?” 

Cotton’s eyes widened and she chuckled, gesturing around her. “It’s been crazy. We’re getting more orders every day; I’m starting to wonder if we’ll finish everything on time.” 

“You always say that,” Silvermist chided. “And you always do just fine, don’t you?” 

“I just finished this stunning backless royal blue piece for this marvelous fairy who was a dream to work with,” said Cotton. “She told me that she finally worked up the courage to ask out her crush. Isn’t that cute?” 

“That is the sweetest thing I’ve heard all day!” exclaimed Silvermist. 

Cotton looked at Tinker Bell and smiled, full of positive energy. “Hi, I’m Cotton!” She stuck her hand out for the tinker fairy to shake. “I don’t think we’ve met.” 

Tinker Bell shook her hand. She had a very firm grip. 

“I’m Tinker Bell, but you can call me Tink.” 

“I have something to show you.” Cotton grinned at her. “Give me one sec!” 

Tinker Bell lifted an eyebrow in confusion. What could Cotton possibly have for her? She hadn’t ordered anything. 

“That fairy is enough happy to last me the rest of the week,” said Vidia. 

Tink turned to face her friends and read their guilty faces. They smiled sheepishly. 

“Guys . . . Is this part of the surprise?”

“Please just give it a chance,” said Iridessa, grasping her hands gently, brown eyes pleading. 

“I have a feeling you're going to like it," said Silvermist. 

Before Tink could respond, Cotton returned empty handed. “I put it in a fitting room. This way!” She gestured with her hand for the fairies to follow her. 

They flew through the chaotic, crowded tailor station with supplies littered everywhere and half-finished dresses strewn about. Cotton pivoted to the left and led them down a quiet hallway with stalls lined up on either side. She stopped at the last door on the right. 

“Here it is.” 

Tinker Bell waited for one of her friends to say something. She turned around, having been the first in line, and saw their expectant expressions. 

“Go on,” Rosetta encouraged. 

“Okay . . .”

Tink braced herself for what was waiting on the other side of that wall. She pulled open the door, peering inside. 

Hanging on a hook next to the full-length mirror was the most gorgeous, intricately designed dress she had ever seen. 

It was fashioned out of thick, green magnolia leaves with a silver belt and single strapped sleeve. The skirt reached all the way down to the floor, and the leaves were designed in such a way that left a thin slit on the left hand side. 

She gasped quietly, gingerly reaching forward to touch it, afraid that it would break. 

“What do you think?” Iridessa asked eagerly. Tink felt a smile tug at the corners of her lips. 

"Do you like it?" asked Rosetta. 

“It’s beautiful,” she said quietly. She looked at Cotton, who beamed bashfully. 

“You made this?” she asked in awe to the tailor fairy. 

“I got to work right after your friends told me about your situation,” said Cotton. “I wanted to make something that would really speak to you . . . I think it's one of my favorites." 

"You did amazing . . . It's perfect."

Cotton shrugged shyly. "What can I say? It's easy when the subject is so stunning." 

A blushing Tink turned to look at her friends, wonderstruck by their kindness. “You did all this . . . For me?” 

“Of course we did, sugarplum.” Rosetta flew inside the fitting room. “We weren’t just going to let you sit at home alone on the night of the ball.” 

“How’d you even get my measurements?” 

Rosetta smiled. 

Tink’s eyes widened. “You . . . You remembered them from the last time we went shopping?” 

The garden fairy nodded. 

Iridessa joined her. “We wanted to show you that you don’t need a date to have fun at the ball.” 

“You are going to look stunning,” said Silvermist. 

Tinker Bell felt overwhelmed. “I don’t know what to say.” 

“Say you’ll go with us,” said Iridessa. “As a group.” 

“Well, about that . . .” Rosetta twirled a curl. “I actually got a date.” 

“So did I,” Silvermist piped up. 

“But the rest of us,” Iridessa explained, gesturing to the remaining fairies, “are going stag." 

"The day I dress for a man is the day I die," affirmed Vidia. 

"I always have more fun with my girls," Fawn added loyally. 

"So what do you say?” Iridessa looked at her optimistically. 

Tinker Bell glanced at the hopeful expressions on her friends’ faces, the pride that radiated off Cotton. They had put their heads together and done all this for _her_. How could she ever thank them? 

“I’ll do it.” 

Iridessa and Rosetta cheered and hugged her simultaneously, each clinging onto an arm. Tink laughed in amusement and wrapped her arms around the fairies, unsure of what she’d done to deserve such magnificent friends. 

_____

“I’m so glad she likes the dress,” said Silvermist as the sun began to dip below the horizon. 

“That was the happiest I’ve seen her since . . .” Iridessa trailed off, frowning in realization. 

“Since she and Terence were together,” Silvermist finished for her. 

A heavy silence settled over the atmosphere. 

“They were so good together . . . How did things get so messed up?” asked Rosetta sadly. 

“I think I’m getting more on board with Fawn’s idea,” said Vidia. 

As if on cue, the very fairy in question walked up ahead into view surrounded by a flock of fairies, with a royal blue dress carelessly tossed over her shoulders. 

Curiously, Fawn honed in her gaze. “That’s Midnight now.” At the sight of the blue garment, she gasped in shock. “Is that the dress Cotton was talking about?” 

Vidia peered closer and narrowed her eyes. “That little snake.” 

Midnight and her friends passed by, and Fawn caught sight of Midnight’s scalding smirk. 

“It _has_ to be.” 

“I can’t believe the nerve of her to call Terence her _crush!”_ exclaimed an affronted Silvermist. 

“I’m following her.” Fawn was about to fly away, but Iridessa pulled onto the back of her tunic. 

“Are you crazy?” 

“Bonkers. But I know that look,” said Fawn determinedly. “I’m gonna see what she’s up to.” 

Fawn yanked her tunic out of Iridessa’s insistent grip. “Wait here,” she instructed her apprehensive friends before flying away. 

“Nothing good can come of this,” called Iridessa to Fawn’s receding form. 

Vidia looked at the other fairies, lips curling in a single-sided smirk. 

Silvermist put her hand up. “Don’t even think about it.” 

But Vidia had already flown away, shredding through the sky. 

She trailed after Fawn, who stalked at a safe distance behind Midnight and her posse. Far enough to stay out of sight, but close enough to eavesdrop. 

“That dress really is remarkable, Midnight,” complimented one of her friends. 

“Cotton really is a wizard,” Midnight said smoothly. “And she said she’d never had so much fun working with a fairy before.” 

“I can’t believe you’re going with _Terence,”_ marveled another minion. “He’s so handsome.” 

“Don’t I know it,” Midnight agreed. 

Fawn and Vidia exchanged a revolted look. 

“He _was_ going with that silly little pixie Tinker Bell,” Midnight said, sounding disgusted. “I don't know what he saw in her. Her soul is black as charcoal." 

“How did he end up going with you?” asked another one of her friends. 

Fawn didn’t see the look on Midnight’s face, but she could have easily guessed. 

“I helped move things along.” 

Vidia gasped. 

“You should have seen the way she reacted when I broke the news.” 

Her friends chuckled unkindly. 

“She was so _pathetic_ . . . She was all stuttering and nervous, and flew out of there fast as her wings could carry her. I even think I heard her cry.” 

More laughter. 

_“O-O-Of course, r-right, I-I k-knew that!”_ Midnight mocked cruelly, casting her head back in laughter. “That little pixie got exactly what she deserved. Fairies like her don't get a happy ending.” 

"She better not show her face at that ball," said one of her faithful minions. 

"Let her come," said Midnight lightly. "I want to see the look on her face when I slow dance with Terence and show her everything she's lost. He's mine now. And she'll never have him again." 

Red flooded Fawn’s freckled face, and she flew forward to give Midnight a piece of her mind. But Vidia with widened grey eyes tugged her back, practiced strength overpowering her outrage. 

_“Don’t,”_ she hissed in Fawn’s ear. Fawn yanked herself free of Vidia’s grip. 

“I’ve heard enough,” she said shakily. “Let’s go.” 

Vidia nodded in agreement, and the two fairies flew back to the tree where the rest of the group remained. 

Rosetta, Iridessa, and Silvermist had scolding faces ready to dish the fairies a solid lecture, but one glance at Fawn and Vidia instantly softened their glares. 

“You look like you’ve seen a pirate,” remarked Rosetta worriedly, stepping forward. “What happened?” 

“Midnight is _evil,”_ Fawn growled. Vidia placed a calming hand on her shoulder. 

“I’ve never hated a fairy so much,” she seethed, “I swear I’m going to-” 

“But what _happened?”_

“She was talking about how Terence is going with her instead of Tink,” explained Vidia, for Fawn in her rage was incapable of speech, “and she said that she _moved things along.”_

“What does that even mean?” exclaimed Iridessa. 

Silvermist narrowed her eyes, calculated and suspicious. 

“I don’t know,” said Vidia, gesturing frantically with her hands. “But she called Tink pathetic, said she didn't deserve a happy ending, and that Terence was 'hers' now.” 

Rosetta and Iridessa gasped, and Silvermist shook her head in dismay. 

“So do you believe me yet?” asked Fawn hoarsely. 

Rosetta, Iridessa, and Silvermist exchanged a look. They took a step closer to the other fairies. 

“We’re in,” said Iridessa. “What’s the plan?”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! See ya on the next one  
> -A


	14. 14

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This one's not as action packed, I apologize, but hang tight :)

“She just makes me so  _ angry.” _ Fawn paced around the maple tree where the fairies gathered around. Several concerned eyes landed on her. 

“She makes all of us angry,” said Rosetta. “But that doesn’t mean we should sit around and complain about it. Aren’t we supposed to be coming up with a plan?” 

For the past 30 minutes, the fairies had been brainstorming ideas to take down Midnight. But none had made it past the first wave of fine tuning and reality checks. 

Fawn had been uncharacteristically quiet through the entire ordeal. 

“Yeah, I thought this was  _ your _ idea,” Vidia tacked on unhelpfully, narrowing her eyes at her friend. 

Fawn frowned. 

“Look, I get it,” said Vidia. “Midnight’s pushing your buttons. She’s pushing all of ours, frankly. But if we want this to work, then you’ve got to get serious.” 

“How are we supposed to expose her motives if she’s got Terence wrapped all the way around her little-” Her eyes widened. “That’s it! I know what we have to do.” 

Her friends sat in a circle with their attention focused on the enthusiastic animal fairy. 

“What?” asked Rosetta. 

“It’s Terence.” 

“What about Terence?” 

“He’s the key,” said Fawn, halting her pacing and approaching the group. “If we get him to realize he’s making a huge mistake, Midnight’s plan will fall apart.” 

“That could work,” said Silvermist. 

Fawn placed her hands proudly on her hips, gazing intently at each fairy in the circle. 

Silvermist and Iridessa looked intrigued. Rosetta raised her eyebrows. And Vidia gave her a deadpan expression. 

“You really think that’s gonna be enough?” the fast flying fairy asked. 

“We’re not going for diabolical sabotage, here,” said Fawn. “The important thing is we get Terence to figure out how much he’s messing up. If we’re too obvious about going on the offensive against Midnight, it will just bring them closer together.” 

“You’re being too nice,” said Vidia boredly. “We need a better plan.” 

“I don’t see you coming up with any ideas!” 

“How do we know he can even be convinced?” asked Rosetta. “Right now, he’s going to believe everything Midnight tells him. There’s no way he’ll trust us.” 

Fawn smiled. “That’s where you’re wrong, Rosetta. We’re not going to convince him. We’re going to show him.” 

“How?” asked Iridessa. 

“They both work at the depot, right?” 

Iridessa nodded. 

“That makes our job easier.”

“I’m not following.” 

“If we split up, some of us will talk to Terence and the rest of us will talk to Midnight.” 

“Wait, why are we talking to Midnight?” asked Iridessa. 

Fawn sighed. 

“We’re going to trick Midnight into thinking we realized the error of our newly ex-friend Tink’s ways. We’ll say we never want to be seen with the likes of her again, which will get Midnight to trust us. Then the rest of you will bring in Terence once we get her talking and we’ll show him what a horrible fairy she truly is.” 

Vidia nodded thoughtfully. “It’s got some merit.” 

Silvermist and Rosetta exchanged a look, then nodded. 

“Okay,” said Silvermist. “We’ll do it.” 

“One question,” said Iridessa, looking uncertain. “Who’s going to talk to who? Because Midnight really scares me-” 

“Don’t worry,” said Fawn gravely. “You can talk to Terence. In fact, you all can. Midnight is mine.” 

“I’m coming with you,” said Vidia. 

“Are you sure?” asked Fawn. She knew Vidia could be a bit testy at the best of times. 

“That’s perfect, actually,” said Rosetta. “You need her there with you. Who formed a grudge against Tink before anyone else?” 

Everyone’s eyes landed on Vidia, who shrugged apathetically. 

“Exactly.” 

“Alright,” Fawn conceded. “You can come. But no one else. I don’t want Midnight to suspect anything.” 

“So what exactly are we supposed to talk to Terence about while you two go woo Midnight?” Silvermist asked. 

“Just stall him for a bit while we get her to trust us,” instructed Fawn. “You don’t want to go too hard on her; he’s in a fragile state right now and probably won’t trust you if you do. Just tell him you have your doubts about her, you have your reasons, and you want to show him if he’ll listen.” 

Not even Vidia’s sharp mind caught the evident flaw in this nearly perfect plan. 

“I hope this works,” said Silvermist solemnly. 

Fawn eyed each fairy intently. “So do we have a plan?” 

Everyone nodded. Then the group took off for the dust depot. 

“So many things could go wrong,” said Iridessa as the flock approached their destination. “Are you sure we should be doing this?” 

“We care about Tink, don’t we?” Fawn refuted. 

“They could already be together when we go in there, and then the whole plan will-” 

“And we want her to be happy?” 

The light fairy nodded. 

“Then we’ll stick to the plan, and figure it out.” 

Fawn looked at Iridessa, Rosetta, and Silvermist. “When you guys find Terence, pull him to the side, get him somewhere comfortable, wherever he wants to talk. We’ll get Midnight talking in an open space, somewhere he can overhear without being seen.”

“And what if Midnight sees him or worse, one of us, before he overhears her?” asked Rosetta. 

“One of you guys will fly ahead and scope out the situation before you get there. Make sure you come in from a point where Midnight can’t see you. Then you’ll signal to us, and we’ll get Midnight incriminating herself just in time for Terence to hear.” 

“It sounds foolproof,” said Silvermist. 

“It’s got some holes,” said Vidia. “Terence could not cooperate, or Midnight might not trust us . . . This whole thing could fall apart in an instant if one of those two things doesn’t happen.” 

“She’s right; it could,” said Silvermist. 

Fawn spun to face her, glaring coldly at the water fairy. “Whose side are you on?” 

“Hey, don’t talk to her that way,” Rosetta defended. “We want this to work every bit as much as you.” 

“What’s it gonna be, then?” Fawn asked, none too nicely. “Will we take a risk for our friend? Or are we just going to sit back and let Midnight win?” 

“I’m not saying we should let her win,” said Vidia. “I’m saying we should take a little more time to-” 

“We don’t have time,” Fawn said, seething. “The ball is in two days; we’re going to work with what we’ve got. And trust me, this is the best way to get her.” 

“What makes you say that?” 

Fawn lowered her eyes, frowning grimly. “You didn’t see Tink the night I talked to her.” The fairy’s tone softened, and she uncrossed her arms. “She was devastated . . . I looked at her and I just wanted to take away all of her pain, right then and there. But I couldn’t. The thought of them going to the ball together was killing her, and . . . It’s killing me, too.” 

Fawn fiddled with her light brown braid. “This is about more than just getting our revenge. This is about two fairies who love each other.” 

_____

Terence organized some pixie dust rations off by himself in a far corner of the depot, safely away from the socializing and commotion. Word of his incident with Bolt a few days prior had spread like wildfire throughout the depor, and not one fairy had come near him since. Which he hadn’t exactly minded. At first. 

Now he was starting to feel lonely. He wanted someone other than Midnight to keep him company. 

And it didn’t help matters any that he couldn’t stop thinking about Tinker Bell no matter how hard he tried. As much as he insisted on denying it, he missed her. Dearly. His days were dimmer without all their talks, laughs, unplanned adventures, and happy little moments. The way her eyes sparkled when she saw him filled his heart with joy, and she had left a hole in his life that he did not know how to fill. 

How had things spiraled so out of control? What had he done that had warranted that kind of reaction from her? 

Uncertainty gnawed at him, asking if maybe there was something else going on that he didn’t know about. Drew’s comments about her being scared swum through his head. He couldn’t stop wondering if that was the reason why. 

But he figured that was just his heart talking, and sulking. Midnight reminded him not to dwell on the past because it wasn’t good for him. 

And it did no good thinking about it now. 

He had tried to mend ties, but Tink hadn’t wanted to. And if she didn’t want to, then they wouldn’t be mended. 

“Terence?” 

A familiar voice drew him back to reality. He glanced up from his task to see not one, not two, but three of Tink’s friends flying toward him, sporting solemn frowns. He peered closer. 

It was Iridessa, Rosetta, and Silvermist. 

His grip on the pixie dust bag immediately tightened. 

“Terence, we need to talk to you. It’s kind of important,” said Silvermist. 

The three fairies flew down beside him, keeping their respectful distance. Terence stood up. 

“How are you doing?” Silvermist asked carefully. 

“I’m fine,” he replied tersely. 

“Terence . . .” Rosetta stepped forward. 

“Is there something I can help you with?” 

Rosetta flinched. “First off I think I owe you an apology.” 

He had not expected that. 

“For what?” he asked, guard softening slightly. 

Rosetta sighed, smoothing out her red hair. “For the way I acted at the gardens. It was uncalled for and rude. I didn’t know the whole story at the time, even though I know that’s not an excuse. I’m sorry. Will you forgive me?” 

Terence relaxed his grip on the dust bag and slowly set it down as he examined Rosetta’s withdrawn form. 

“It’s okay,” he said kindly, seeing no point in continuing the conflict. “And of course I forgive you. There’s no hard feelings.” 

Rosetta’s green eyes widened, and she glanced at Silvermist before looking back at Terence with a smile. 

“Good,” she said. “I’m really glad you feel that way. Because what we’re here to talk to you about is important, and I wanted to clear the air first.” 

Terence raised his eyebrows. “Wait, so that wasn’t what you were here to say?”

“No.” Rosetta looked at the girls again, who only responded with doubtful looks of their own. They were clearly looking for a leader, and Rosetta’s feet clearly did not fit the shoes. 

Silvermist stepped forward. “We want to talk to you about Midnight.” 

Terence tensed up. “Why?” 

“There’s some things we found out about her that we think you should know.” 

His eyes darted to the side, and he looked back at the girls uncomfortably. 

“Like what?” 

“She’s not who she says she is,” Silvermist said quickly. 

“What makes you say that?” asked Terence. “You don’t even know her.” 

“We know enough.” 

Terence shook his head, immediately falling back on the defensive. “Look, I don’t know what you’re trying to tell me, but I’m not interested in hearing it, alright?” 

Silvermist whipped around at Iridessa for help, who flew toward him. “This isn’t to freak you out, or to tell you what to do. We’re just trying to look out for you because we don’t want you to get hurt.” 

“Don’t worry,” assured Terence, chuckling humorlessly, “I’ve already been plenty hurt. Now, if you don’t mind, I have a lot of stuff to get back to.” 

He turned away from the fairies and pretended to occupy himself with his rations until Rosetta flew behind him and tapped him on the shoulder. He spun back around. 

“I know we haven’t been the nicest to you lately,” said Rosetta softly, “but we’re here now as your friends. Midnight isn’t a good fairy, Terence. And we can prove it.” 

“How are you going to do that?” 

Rosetta and Silvermist exchanged a look.

“Wait a minute . . .” Terence pointed a finger at the fairy suspiciously. “This isn’t about Tink, is it?” 

Silvermist opened her mouth to speak, but Terence was quicker. “Anything she wants to say to me, she can say herself. I’m not taking messages from her little helpers.” 

Iridessa’s mouth dropped open in shock. 

“That wasn’t very nice,” Silvermist said unhappily. 

“We’re not her ‘little helpers,’” argued Iridessa, making a face. 

“Listen,” Rosetta said firmly. “Whatever you and Tink have going on, that’s between the two of you. But we have some information that we think you may want to hear.” 

“And what makes you think I want to hear it, even if I did believe you?” 

Rosetta reeled back in shock. 

“Look, Terence,” said Silvermist, brown eyes widening with urgency. “I know you and Tink aren’t on the best of terms right now, and I understand why. I’m right there with you. In fact, I think I even choose your side on this one because of how terrible she acted.” 

Terence relaxed his hands as he considered her words. 

“But Midnight is not your answer.” Silvermist put her hands on her hips. “She doesn’t have your best interests at heart. And we can show you.” 

Terence cocked a disbelieving brow. “You can . . . show me.” 

“Yes! We can,” said Iridessa. 

He shook his head. “What you’re trying to do for Tink is really nice. I get it.” 

Silvermist and Rosetta put their hands up in an attempt to stop him, but he continued. “You’re her friends, you’re trying to vouch for her, it’s sweet.”

“No,” Silvermist tried, but Terence carried on. 

“But if she felt at all sorry for what she did, she would have told me.” 

Rosetta frowned. “Terence, that’s not what we’re-” 

“I appreciate the effort and all, but I’d prefer it if you just left.” 

“Terence, stop!” The ferocity of Rosetta’s voice surprised him. 

She took a deep breath and fluffed out her dress. “There’s something we need to show you. Could you please come with us?” 

“I told you, I’m not interested in hearing your opinions about Midnight. Unlike Tink, she’s actually been nice to me.” 

“I understand that, but-” 

“And it doesn’t send a very good message that you, Tink’s close friends, are here trying to convince me I shouldn’t trust Midnight, a fairy you all hate, who also happens to be the only fairy who’s been here for me through this whole mess.” 

The trio exchanged defeated looks, then eyed Terence sorrowfully. 

“I’m sorry if that isn’t what you wanted to hear,” said Terence. “But I’m done going behind other fairies’ backs.” 

He quickly flew from the scene, ignoring their panicked shouts of protest. He knew if he’d stayed, he would have ended up confessing that he still had strong feelings for Tinker Bell that he did not know how to quell. He couldn’t let anyone know how he felt after he’d been betrayed like that. It was better for everyone to keep it hidden and hoped it faded away on its own. 

____

“This better work,” muttered Vidia as they flew into the center of the dust depot. 

Fawn’s brown eyes bore deeply into her grey ones. “It will.” 

“Tink owes us big time.” 

The fairies made their landing and headed over to the desks where the dust keepers were working. 

Flint, Stone, and Bolt were the first to see them. Fawn noticed a sizable bandage over Bolt’s nose. 

“Well, look what the cat dragged in,” Stone said snidely, looking at them lavisciously. His eyes stayed on Fawn. “Or should I say skunk.” 

Flint, Bolt, and several other dust keepers nearby burst into laughter. 

Fawn balled her hands into fists. Vidia rubbed her shoulder to steady her. 

“Save your insults for someone who cares,” said Vidia indifferently, rolling her eyes. “We’re looking for Midnight.” 

“You happen to know where she is?” asked Fawn as levelly as possible. 

“Maybe we do, maybe we don’t,” said Bolt as he flew closer to the pair. “But why should we help you? Friends of Tinker Bell’s are no friends of ours.” 

“Oh, don’t even pretend like you have Terence’s back,” Fawn seethed, narrowing her eyes. “We know all the stuff you said about him. How can you even stand here and call yourself his friend?” 

“Fawn,” Vidia hissed, yanking her close and whispering in her ear,  _ “We aren’t here for them.”  _

Fawn begrudgingly unclenched her fists and relaxed while Vidia smiled sweetly at the boys. 

“You realize we’re going to find her, with or without your help, right? We were just being polite.” 

Flint and Stone exchanged a skeptical glance. 

Without waiting for them to react, Vidia flew past them and soared over the desks, looking left and right for Midnight, shouting her name. 

“Midnight!” 

“What the hell?” exclaimed an outraged Bolt. 

Stone shook his head, mouth agape. “She can’t just fly in here and-” 

“Midnight? Where are you?” called Vidia. Several fairies at work whipped their heads up to find the source of the noise. 

A fairy with long brown hair and seafoam green eyes marched up angrily to Fawn, furrowing her brows. “You need to get that friend of yours under control,” she commanded. 

“I didn’t tell her to do that!” Fawn argued fruitlessly. 

“She’s disrupting our workspace and causing a scene,” the brunette said, folding her arms. “She needs to stop.” 

“Midnight!” called Vidia again, louder. 

“I’m sorry; we didn’t mean to cause any trouble,” Fawn apologized. “But we need to talk to Midnight. Is she here?” 

The brunette’s green eyes widened. “Yeah, she is, actually. If I get her for you, will your friend cut it out?” 

Fawn nodded. 

The fairy cast her a mean glare and flew away. 

“Vidia!” Fawn exclaimed. “Get down here.” 

“What?” Vidia protested from above with a chuckle. “You don’t want to join in on the fun?” She flew around in circles so quickly that papers fell from desks. 

“Be quiet!” a working dust keeper hissed. 

_ “Vidia.”  _

“Fine.” Vidia flew back down and landed beside Fawn with a pout. “You’re no fun.” 

“Midnight’s coming. Just wait.” 

“I’ve got her,” said the brunette, returning with none other than an annoyed looking Midnight at her side. “Midnight, these fairies want to talk to you.”

Midnight eyed the pair, and scrunched her face up in distaste. 

“What could you two possibly want to talk to me about?” 

Fawn looked at Vidia, nodded slightly, and then resumed eye contact with Midnight. 

“You’re probably wondering why we’re here,” she began carefully. “But we wanted to talk to you because . . . we’ve recently had a change of heart. About Tinker Bell.” 

Midnight’s deep brown eyes widened considerably. “Continue.” 

Vidia glanced at her company, especially eyeing the brunette. “We’d prefer to talk to her alone, if that’s okay.” 

The boys flew away, probably relieved to have an out from the drama. The brunette, however, put her hands on her hips and stayed put. 

“Anything you want to say to Midnight, you can say in front of me.” 

“Drew.” Midnight looked at her. “I appreciate your support, but I can handle this.” 

The fairy called Drew narrowed her eyes suspiciously at the pair, but flew away without another word. 

Midnight returned her gaze to Fawn and Vidia, still heavily guarded. “What’s this all about?” 

“She and I were doing some thinking,” Vidia explained, gesturing to Fawn, “and we realized that Tinker Bell is no longer a fairy we want to associate with.” 

“And what caused you to realize that?” she asked, slightly softer. 

“Well, the way she talks to us, for one,” said Fawn, hoping that if any of this got back to Tink, she would have faith that they were doing it for the right reasons. 

“She’s just so rude all the time. She takes us for granted, and never appreciates anything we do for her. What we value in a friend is someone who can reciprocate, who can look out for you the same way you look out for them.” Fawn and Vidia exchanged a look before Fawn continued. “And we don’t think reciprocity is in her vocabulary.” 

Midnight chuckled good naturedly and shook her head. “No, it’s certainly not.” 

The fairies felt some of their tension wash out. They were off to a good start. 

“And we think it speaks volumes how we came to this conclusion even after only hearing her side of the story,” said Vidia. “She told us this twisted version of what happened, about how Terence hurt her so much and said all these things. But we don’t believe it’s the truth. It sounds like the only fairy at fault here is her. Don’t you think she deserves to pay for what she did?”

Midnight smiled. “I absolutely do. I’m glad to hear I’m not the only fairy who feels this way.” 

“We also think Terence deserves better,” said Fawn. “Like you, for instance.” 

Midnight blushed, gaze dropping to the ground. She looked back up at the fairies shyly and bit back a smile. 

“You think so?” 

Her affection, however possessive, at least seemed genuine. Fawn almost felt bad for her. 

“Yes. We do.” 

“I have to say I was not expecting to hear this from two of Tink’s closest friends. What changed your minds?” 

“We realized,” said Vidia, playing with her ponytail, “that we were only close with her because we felt like we had to be. Once we realized we didn’t have to hold onto someone that was dragging us down, it was so easy to detach.” 

“And the others?” Midnight asked, lifting a brow. “Aren’t there more of you?” 

“Y-Yes,” Fawn began, “but . . . we don’t think they’ve . . . come to their senses yet.” 

“We have to look out for ourselves first,” said Vidia, nodding her head. 

“You certainly do,” agreed Midnight. 

“And as for them, I hope they realize sooner rather than later that Tink is toxic. But we can’t help them right now.” Fawn’s chest lurched at the lies she’d spilled about her friend, but it was for a good reason, she reminded herself. It was for a good reason. 

“Well, I’m glad you’ve realized on your own that you can do so much better than that pathetic, bratty little pixie,” said Midnight silkily. “Friends are supposed to lift each other up. Not tear each other down.” 

“That’s what I was hoping we could do,” said Fawn, stepping forward. “I want to make a truce. I know we’ve said some unkind things to each other in the past, but in light of recent events I’m willing to put all of it behind us if you are, too.” She slowly extended her hand for the fairy to shake. 

Midnight stepped closer, smiling softly and taking Fawn’s hand in her own. She gave it a light shake. “Gladly.” 

Suddenly, Vidia caught sight of Rosetta and Silvermist off in the distance, signaling at her frantically. Vidia turned to Fawn and made eye contact. It was show time. 

Fawn gently let go of Midnight’s hand and smiled warmly at her new ally. 

“So,” said Vidia, smirking. “Now that we’ve all bonded over our mutual hatred of Tinker Bell, let’s talk about her.” 

Midnight’s eyes sparkled with excitement. 

“Don’t you think it’s ridiculous how she became the best rated tinker almost overnight?” 

Midnight rolled her eyes, gesturing with her hands. “I know! She doesn’t even have that much talent.” 

“And don’t you agree that Queen Clarion only let her go to the mainland because she felt bad for her?” Fawn asked. 

She quickly glanced up to see if her friends had flown any closer with Terence. They hadn’t. 

“She only had to come up with all those inventions to save spring because  _ she _ was the one who destroyed everything in the first place,” said Midnight. “Talk about taking responsibility! She sure knows how to invent cleaning up her own messes.” 

Fawn and Vidia laughed dutifully, while both sneaking glances behind Midnight to see if their friends were coming. Again, nothing. 

Fawn inwardly cursed. That would have been the perfect moment. 

She looked at Vidia, as if to say,  _ We can’t keep her talking forever _ .

Vidia looked back.  _ I know _ . 

“You know, I meant what I said earlier,” improvised Fawn. “I think you’re a much better match for Terence than Tink was.” 

Midnight grinned. “You think so?” 

“I do.” 

“Even if he and Tink did end up going to the ball together, I wouldn’t have let it last for long,” Midnight said lightly. “They were destined to fall apart. Look at how little time it took for her to hurt him.” She frowned, fiddling with her ebony hair. 

“Everyone sees her as this kind, sweet, beautiful fairy. And maybe she is- on the outside. But on the inside . . . she is ugly as can be.” 

Fawn tensed up, controlling herself as best as she could. 

Then Rosetta and Silvermist popped their heads up from their hiding places and gestured for Fawn and Vidia to fly over to them. 

Fawn looked at Vidia, panicked. They both knew that wasn’t part of the plan. 

“Uh . . .” Vidia shot her best smile at Midnight, placing her hands behind her back. “I really like where this conversation is going, but we’ve actually gotta jet. We’ll see you later, Midnight!” 

She yanked on Fawn’s arm and flew them away faster than Fawn could say wait. 

“Vidia, what are you  _ doing?”  _

“They were telling us to come over here. Something’s wrong.” 

They reached Rosetta and the others in record time, landing down beside them and sweeping their gazes over the dust depot to make sure they weren’t seen. 

“What is going on?” asked Vidia urgently. “We were just getting her to talk, why weren’t you- Wait.” She looked at the trio, eyes widening as she noticed the absence of one particular fairy. “Where’s Terence?” 

Rosetta and Iridessa shamefully averted their gaze to the ground. Only Silvermist looked them in the eye. 

“He wouldn’t come,” she said quietly. 

_ “What?”  _

“Oh, no,” Fawn groaned, running a weary hand through her brown bangs. “All that work . . .” 

“Why not?” exclaimed a flabbergasted Vidia. 

“He’s dead set on Midnight being a good fairy,” said Iridessa angrily. “He wouldn’t listen to us.” 

“Wait,” said Vidia, as a sudden realization dawned on her. “You  _ told _ him Midnight was trying to manipulate him? Why would you do that?” 

“We were just following the plan,” said Iridessa, placing her hands up in a futile attempt to calm the other down. 

“The  _ plan _ was to get him to come here. Obviously he wasn’t going to trust you guys if you painted Midnight out to be this horrible fairy.” Vidia furrowed her brows. 

“Of course he thinks she’s good. The whole point was to prove to him she’s not. If you tried to plead your case before showing him, there’s no way he was going to trust you.  _ Ugh!”  _ She facepalmed and paced back and forth. 

“The plan was to tell him our apprehensions,” argued Rosetta. “And we did.” 

“How hard is it for you guys to have basic common sense?” Vidia asked, although knowing it wasn’t fair to point fingers when she herself had only just realized the error in their plan. 

“How hard would it have been for you to give us a heads up about this before going in?” Rosetta snapped back. 

“It doesn’t matter.” Vidia shook her head in dismay. “Because it’s done now. Civil discourse clearly didn’t work for us. It’s time to take more drastic measures.” 

Fawn opened her mouth. “You’re not saying-” 

“I am.” Vidia smirked, silencing the other fairies. “It’s time to move onto Plan B. And lucky for you, I have an idea.” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks for reading! See ya on the next one   
> -A


	15. 15

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The ball, and the shenanigans, begin. Credit to my little sister for coming up with Vidia's devious plan

Rosetta tied up the bun she’d braided in Tinker Bell’s blonde hair. It sat low, just above her neck line, and it was loosely contained with strands of hair on either side framing her face. Tinker Bell had finally been able to remove the bandage from her head, just in time for the ball. Even though she didn’t care as much about looking nice for the evening as she did getting it over with, she figured she could bend the rules and remove the bandage a few days early because what Ivy didn’t know wouldn’t kill her. 

The idea of going to the ball with her friends had sounded perfectly fine, at first. But reality just needed to run its course and remind her how deceiving hypotheticals could be before they materialized into the concrete. 

Every time she pictured Terence dancing with Midnight, her stomach tightened. Tingles of dread surged through her veins. It felt like her insides were in knots. 

“Hair is done,” Rosetta said proudly, rubbing Tink’s shoulders affectionately. Tink felt around the braided swirl of her hair and stood up from Rosetta’s chair. 

“Look at me.” 

Tinker Bell turned to face her friend, who smiled joyfully. 

“You look incredible.” 

Tink could have said the same thing about Rosetta; the garden fairy was dressed in a pale green gown that complemented both her hair and her eyes. Her ginger locks were curled down around her face with a green ribbon pulling one side back. 

“Thank you.” She squeezed Rosetta’s hands before softly letting go. “You look amazing, too, by the way.” 

It was easier to deflect and be kind to her friends than reveal her fear. 

Rosetta blushed and turned to look at Silvermist who was perched on her bed pulling her long, sleek hair up in a high ponytail. She wore a sleeveless, fluffy turquoise dress. 

“Need any help with your hair, Sil? I’m all freed up now.” 

“I think I’ve got it, but we can’t be so sure about this one over here.” Silvermist gestured with her head over to Iridessa, who was bent over the mirror and yanking a hairbrush through her thick, frizzy, dark hair. She was a nervous wreck. 

“It’s hopeless,” Iridessa wailed. “I can’t go looking like this.” 

“Come on, Dess, you don’t even know if he’s gonna be there,” said Silvermist. The fairy in question was a handsome young man by the name of Sage, who had been the object of Iridessa’s affections for the past few months. While they were considerable acquaintances, unfortunately neither fairy had summoned the courage to ask the other to the ball. 

“He’s gonna be there,” Iridessa insisted. “Some of his light fairy friends were talking about it yesterday.” 

She self consciously rubbed the fabric of her tiger orange dress. 

“Even if he is, you have nothing to worry about,” chastised Silvermist. 

Iridessa stared at herself in the mirror, making up her mind after a moment’s time. “Are you kidding me? You see my hair, right? That does it. I’m staying here.” 

She huffed and let go of the brush, which hung of its own accord from her bushy hair. 

“Here, let me help.” Rosetta gently wriggled the brush free from Iridessa’s stubborn locks. She began gingerly sifting the brush through the fairy’s thick mane. 

“Ow! That hurts.” Iridessa winced and crossed her arms. 

“You big baby, it can’t be that bad.” Rosetta continued combing through her hair. 

Meanwhile, Vidia patted out the final touches on her bun. Instead of a dress she wore a deep blue pantsuit. 

“I for one am glad I don’t have to deal with any boys tonight,” she said. 

“We know you dealt with enough last time for the rest of us,” jested Fawn. Vidia shot her a nasty glare. 

Fawn was clothed in a pale pink rose petal dress with matching pink shoes and ribbons in her honey brown hair. Instead of a signature braid her hair was fanned neatly around her shoulders and down her back. 

“Fawn, you look beautiful,” Tink said kindly, flying over to her friend. 

Fawn smiled down at the floor, shuffling her shoes on Rosetta’s soft carpet. “I could say the same about you.” 

Tink’s neatly styled hair was still slightly messy, and it complemented her sparkling sapphire eyes and dark green magnolia dress nicely. “It’s not a competition,” she said quietly. 

Fawn’s brown eyes met hers. “I know.” 

Tink peeled her eyes away from the scrutinizing stare. Surely Fawn could see through her calm facade and sense that something was wrong. She tightly squeezed her hands together. 

“Hey . . .” Fawn’s smile faded. “Are you okay?” 

Tink nodded quickly. 

With a particularly rough yank of the brush from Rosetta, Iridessa yelped in pain. “Ow! What, are you trying to kill me?” 

Fawn narrowed her eyes at her friend before turning to face the commotion, thankfully giving her a break. 

“There, all done.” Rosetta set the brush down and smiled satisfactorily. “Now, that wasn’t so bad, was it?” 

Iridessa grumbled under her breath, though the condition of her hair had admittedly improved. Rosetta had transformed her frizzy, tangled mess into a neatly combed, soft style that framed her face agreeably. Rosetta picked up two clips and pulled back some of the front strands on either side. Then she backed up to admire her handiwork. 

“There. Perfect.” 

Iridessa stepped aside from Rosetta to examine herself in the mirror. She nodded in approval. “I’ll admit, that looks a lot better.” 

“Good, now will you quit your whining?” Silvermist asked. 

Iridessa indignantly put her hands on her hips. “My hair problem won’t fix my  _ social _ problem, Sil. Regardless of how I look I’m not going to know what to say to him.” 

“Now you’re just  _ looking _ for reasons to be nervous,” Rosetta scolded. “Just be yourself.” 

“Yeah, because that went  _ so _ well last time.” 

Rosetta looked at her questioningly. 

“The sunflower field?” Iridessa tried. “That night we were talking, and he just got really quiet and started a random conversation about boysenberry rolls?” 

Nothing. 

“Then he just flew away out of nowhere?” When her speech still drew no reaction from her friend, she rolled her eyes. 

“I told  _ one _ of you about it. It was a disaster!” 

“We seem to have a new wave of girls making the first move,” said Vidia, side-eyeing Tink with a smirk. “Maybe you should take a leaf out of Tink’s book.” 

“Hey!” Tink protested. 

“Well, it worked, didn’t it?” 

“Yeah, but-” 

“So there you have it.” Vidia smiled smugly at Iridessa. 

“I have no idea how to approach him on my own,” said Iridessa. “I’m not good at this stuff . . .” 

“I mean, I can go with you if you want,” offered Vidia with a shrug of her shoulders. “But I personally think you’ll make a more lasting impression if you go alone.” 

“You need to run the show,” said Fawn. “Going up to him with a friend will just put him in a two-on-one situation, which will make him feel awkward.” 

“You have nothing to be worried about, Iridessa,” said Tink. “Just talk to him, and be yourself. If he doesn’t like the real you, he’s not worth your time.” 

Iridessa sighed, and then nodded. “You’re right.” 

“I’ve been saying that for years!” exclaimed Fawn, threading a finger through her long, brown hair. “But suddenly Tink says it once and she’s  _ right?”  _

“Sage is different than the others,” Iridessa said dreamily, smiling dazedly. “He listens and he’s sweet and understanding. He never judges me about anything. I’m just . . . Shy. That’s all.” 

“You have no reason to be shy!” Tink encouraged. “If you feel comfortable around him, just be the best version of yourself you can possibly be. He’ll love you.” 

Iridessa smiled at her and patted down her puffy hair. 

“It’s funny,” Fawn said shortly. “Because you’re so good at dishing out relationship advice, but you can never seem to take it.” 

Tink frowned at her, crossing her arms defensively and feeling her heart uptick. 

“What are you trying to say?” 

Fawn sighed. “I’m not saying anything, Tink.” 

“Sure doesn’t sound like it.” 

“I don’t know, I just don’t like how you pretended to listen to all of us tell you how to handle things with Terence, by simply  _ talking _ to him, and then you just went and did the exact opposite of talking to him.” 

Tink’s eyes widened. “I  _ told _ you what happened when I tried to talk to him.” 

“Oh, you mean when you ran into Midnight and stormed off?” Fawn held her gaze, frowning. 

Words failed her. Tink did not know what to say. 

“Guys, can we quit arguing and just go?” interrupted Silvermist, standing up from Rosetta’s bed. Her straight, sleek black hair was pulled away from her face in a high ponytail. She looked dazzling. 

Tink narrowed her eyes at Fawn. Fawn looked away. 

“We’re already fashionably late. We don’t want to be late-late.” Silvermist smiled. “Plus, I can’t wait to see Amethyst.” 

“Wait,” said Tink, suddenly reminded, “where are your dates?” 

Rosetta and Silvermist looked at each other. 

“Where are they?” 

“We, uh . . .” Silvermist scratched her ear. “We told them to meet us there.” 

“Why?”

“Because . . .” Silvermist clasped her hands together. 

“We figured we already had enough fairies here,” said Rosetta, coming to her aid. “We didn’t want things to be all crowded while we were getting ready.” 

Tink’s head swum with suspicion. Something about her explanation didn’t quite add up. 

“We wouldn’t have had any room,” she continued. “Besides, we would have bored them to pieces talking about hair and makeup the whole time.” 

Tinker Bell thought about how excited she’d been to go with Terence. How she’d imagined the two of them walking in together, hand in hand, ready to dance and enjoy the night as a couple. Her heart clenched. Now she’d never have that. 

Then she realized. 

Rosetta and Silvermist hadn’t fended their dates off for them. They’d fended them off for her. 

“Guys . . .” Tinker Bell sank onto Rosetta’s bed, wrapping her arms around herself and focusing pointedly on a spot on the ground. “You didn’t have to do that.” 

“Do what?” Silvermist asked, approaching her. 

Tink gestured frustratedly with her hands. “All  _ this _ . Waiting until the ball to meet up with your dates. Doing my hair. I get that you’re trying to make me feel better, and I’d be lying if I said it wasn’t working, but when you disinvite your dates on my behalf it just makes me feel worse.”

Rosetta and Silvermist’s eyes widened, and they shook their heads. “No, Tink, that’s not what this is about-” 

“I can’t put into  _ words _ how horrible I feel about Terence.” Tears pricked at the corners of her eyes. She blinked them rapidly away. “But it’s  _ my _ problem.” 

“We didn’t disinvite our dates,” said Silvermist. “We never invited them in the first place. We thought it would be more fun to go to the ball just us and then meet them there. This has nothing to do with you. We promise.” 

Tink put her head in her hands and sighed quietly. She wasn’t sure if she believed them, but she was too weary to argue. “Okay.” 

“Sweetie . . .” Rosetta sat next to her and rubbed a comforting hand on her shoulder. “If you aren’t sure about tonight, then . . . That’s your choice to make. But we just want you to be happy, no matter what you choose.” 

“I don’t know if going tonight is a good idea,” Tink confessed. 

“Why not?” asked Silvermist. 

“Because!” the tinker fairy exclaimed, standing up. “I lost my best friend, and tonight I have to see him dancing with another fairy. A fairy who isn’t . . . me.” 

“You don’t have to go anywhere near him,” Rosetta said. “Tonight is about having fun and moving on. We won’t even speak his name.” 

“There it is, right there!” Tink pointed a finger at the garden fairy. “You all treat me like I’m made of glass, like I’m gonna break any second.” 

Rosetta and Silvermist looked at each other. 

“We’re worried about you,” said Fawn. “We just want to help.” 

“Well, I don’t need your help.” 

“Tink-” 

“And I certainly don’t need anyone trying to make me feel better about this.” She sat back down on the bed. “This is my mess, and I don’t want anyone else getting involved.” 

Fawn and Vidia exchanged a discreet, unhappy look. They both remembered what Midnight had said about Tink cleaning up messes. 

“I’m not going to have fun tonight if you guys are all acting like you need to keep me away from whatever’s bothering me.” Tink fiddled with her belt. “I’m not going to pretend like everything’s okay, so I want you to understand that I’m going to feel whatever I’m feeling. But I won’t let that get in the way of tonight. Alright?” 

“Okay . . .” Fawn took a seat on the bed, eyeing her cautiously. “But if you need to talk to one of us, or feel like you need to leave at any point, don’t keep it in.” 

“I won’t.” Tink stood up, smoothed out her dress, and placed her hands on her hips, plastering on the best smile she could. “Now, are we ready to go, or what?” 

Silvermist grinned, eyeing Iridessa. “Someone’s ready to give Sage a smooch.” 

Iridessa elbowed her arm. “Hey!” 

____

The ball was bedazzling with golden lights and floating lanterns of various colors. The venue was outdoors with a breathtaking view of the starry night sky. Live music accompanied the evening with an array of snacks and refreshments. 

Fairies fretted with drinks in their hands and tugging at their friends. Laughter, smiles, unsteady feet, and playful hand holding decorated the dance floor. Some fairies lingered in the back, standing around in circles socializing and eating. 

“The Spring Soiree was  _ definitely _ not this crowded,” commented Vidia upon their arrival. 

“Everyone knows the balls are more fun,” said Silvermist. 

“Look, even Queen Clarion’s here!” Iridessa pointed to the left hand corner of the wooden deck, where their queen stood having a conversation with Fairy Mary. Her golden dress sparkled blindingly bright. 

Tinker Bell felt the pressure around her chest loosen slightly. She reasoned with this many fairies here it would be impossible to find Terence. She was safe. 

“We’ll be right back,” Rosetta said, tugging on Silvermist’s arm. “We’re going to find our dates.” 

“Well, don’t be long,” said Fawn. 

Vidia shot her a look. “Fawn, isn’t there a certain kind of food you wanted to show me?” 

Fawn blinked. “What?” 

Vidia’s gaze hardened. “Over at the snack table. Didn’t you say I had to try it? That you would be mad if I didn’t? You were really insistent.” 

Fawn’s eyes widened. “Oh, the-  _ Oh. _ Right. Yes. Let’s go do that. Let’s go do that right now.” 

“What are you talking about?” Tink raised an eyebrow. Iridessa scrunched up her face in confusion. 

“Nothing,” Fawn said hurriedly. “We’ll be right back. Don’t move a muscle.” 

And the two fairies disappeared into the crowd. 

Iridessa shook her head. “I don’t know what that was all about, but I’m hungry, and I’m not waiting on them. Let’s go grab a bite.” 

Tinker Bell followed her in bewilderment to the snack table. 

Meanwhile, Fawn and Vidia took their time making their way around the ball, to avoid being spotted. After Tink and Iridessa had safely vacated the snack table, the fairies made their way over to the drinks. 

Vidia peered over a bowl of pink punch, snickering evilly. “This is our project of the night. Are you ready?” 

Fawn was on hyper alert, tensing up and glancing over her shoulder. 

“Don’t look around,” hissed an irritated Vidia. “Haven’t you ever spiked the punch at a public event before?” 

Fawn folded her arms, giving her a deadpan expression. “No, actually, I haven’t.” 

Vidia smiled. “Well then, my apprentice, watch and learn.” She fished through the pockets of her pantsuit and pulled out a small vial of a clear substance. Alcohol. 

Fawn wrinkled her nose. 

“You sure that’s gonna be enough?” 

“You really think that’s all I brought?” Vidia countered. She reached deeper into her pockets and pulled out four more identical vials. 

Fawn’s eyes widened. 

Vidia put the bottles back in her pockets, and unscrewed the lid off the first one. “Phase 1 is underway.” She nonchalantly emptied its contents into the bowl of punch. Fawn watched with fascinated eyes as the clear substance swirled around in the pink liquid. 

“I know it looks harmless,” said Vidia, pulling out the second vial and repeating her motions, “but it’s stronger than a hawk who missed a meal. And this ball is about to get a lot more chaotic. I only hope no one gets hurt . . . Although, to teach Midnight a lesson and put that fairy in her place, there’s very few things I couldn’t stomach.” 

_____

“How’s your sandwich?” Iridessa asked. 

Tink chewed her bite, swallowed, then nodded at her friend. “It’s good.” 

She scanned the dance floor for the upteenth time, searching for a certain pair of fairies. Whether it was because she liked to torture herself or because she simply felt the compulsive need to validate all her anxieities she had no idea. 

“Stop looking for them.” Iridessa stepped into her peripheral, furrowing her brows. “Remember what we talked about?” 

Tinker Bell ignored her because her eyes finally landed on the couple she’d been looking for. Midnight’s short black hair was done up in a bun, and her skin looked stunningly tan against the royal blue fabric of her backless dress. She stood smiling next to Terence, rubbing her hand affectionately up and down his arm as they talked to their friends. Terence looked devastatingly handsome in his suit with his blonde hair slicked back and blue eyes twinkling. Tink felt bile in the back of her throat. 

“Tink?” 

She blinked a few times, training her unsteady gaze back on Iridessa, who looked at her worriedly. 

“You okay?” 

“I’m fine.” Tink twirled with a stray piece of hair that had fallen from her loose bun. 

Iridessa looked like she was about to protest, but before she could say anything Silvermist and Rosetta returned with their dates. 

“Everyone, this is Amethyst.” Silvermist gestured to the tall sparrowman. He had white blonde hair with a violet streak running through the middle and striking blue eyes, with a purple suit to match. He smiled warmly at the group. 

“Hi, I’m Amethyst.” 

“Hey, I’m Iridessa. And this is Tink.” 

Tink waved awkwardly. 

“Nice to meet you guys.” Amethyst reached down and linked hands with Silvermist. 

Tink trained her eyes back out on the dance floor and almost immediately found Terence and Midnight again. They were standing closer together. She swallowed thickly. 

“And this is my date, Clove.” Rosetta wrapped her arm around the brunette sparrowman. 

“It’s a pleasure,” he said in a deep voice. 

Rosetta looked at Iridessa and smiled. “Clove was telling me that he knows your friend Sage.” 

Iridessa reeled back. “Wait, what? You know him?” she asked, high pitched. Then she cleared her throat, aware that her unparalleled enthusiasm might make the wrong impression. “I mean, that’s . . . Awesome?” 

Rosetta and Clove chuckled before sharing a knowing smile. 

“Actually, he’s a pretty good friend of mine,” said Clove. “And I remember him talking about asking out a certain fairy . . . But he was too afraid. I think he said something about chickening out at the sunflower field yesterday and starting a sudden conversation about . . . boysenberries? Before flying away?” 

Iridessa gasped, hands flying over her mouth. “Wait,  _ what?”  _

Clove nodded. “He’s just over there grabbing a drink if you want to talk to him. I’m pretty sure he’s alone, so you won’t have to worry about running into any of his friends or anything.” 

Iridessa spun to face Silvermist, Amethyst, and Tink. 

“Should I?” 

“Yes!” Silvermist exclaimed. “Go!” 

Iridessa grinned, jumped joyfully up into the air, and then scurried off. 

“Confidence, Dess!” Rosetta called after her. Iridessa slowed her pace to a calm walk. 

Tink smiled sadly as her friend walked away, envying the excitement she knew the fairy felt. Her ardent mannerisms left devastatingly familiar, nostalgic feelings of adoration and affection toward Terence. She could do nothing with these feelings. They sat collecting dust on her shoulders. 

Every time Terence complimented her, or held her hand, tingles of electricity would jolt through her body. She found herself craving his touch like one craved the air. She could not help but yearn for him. She missed him with a pain so searing it seeped into her very bones. 

“Tink?”

Hearing Rosetta call her name brought her back to reality. 

“Yeah?” Tink smiled at her friend as though she weren’t falling apart on the inside. 

“You were spacin’ off . . . I just wanted to make sure you were okay.” 

Tink sighed. “I’m fine, Rosetta.” 

Rosetta looked at her with uncertainty. 

“You aren’t thinking about them, are you?” she asked softly. 

Tink flinched. “O-Of course not.” 

“Okay, good. They’re not worth your time, sugarplum.” 

Tink looked down at her feet. 

“I know what will cheer you up,” said Clove. The sound of his voice startled her and caused her to look back up. “Why don’t I introduce you to some of my friends?” 

Out of the corner of her eye she saw Midnight pull Terence out onto the dance floor, face passively calm as she stood before him holding his hands. Tink dug her nails into her skin. 

“Tink?” asked Silvermist. 

“Huh?” Tink looked at the water fairy. 

“Clove was saying-” 

“I was saying some of my friends would love to meet you. Want to walk with us?” Clove smiled kindly at her as he wrapped an arm around Rosetta. 

“Oh, I, um . . .” Tink saw Midnight pull Terence close and wrap her skinny arms around his neck as they settled on the dance floor. She froze. 

“If you don’t, it’s completely okay,” said Clove, glancing at Rosetta. “I was just-” 

“Tink! Snap out of it.” Rosetta stepped close to her, snapping her fingers in her face. 

Tink blinked back to reality and unclenched her hands, shoulders relaxing. 

“What is going on with you?” Rosetta asked. “You were fine earlier, now you look like you’re about to pass out.” 

She saw Terence wrap his arm around Midnight’s waist. 

“I’m fine,” she said faintly, backing away. “I just- I need to- I’m gonna go freshen up, real quick.” 

“Tink, you’re acting really strange,” said Silvermist. “Could you just tell us what’s going on?” 

Tink’s stomach churned. She felt like she was going to be sick. 

“Seriously, I’m okay. Go dance or something. I have to go- I’ll be right back.” 

“Wait, Tink-” 

Tink backed away from the concerned gazes of her friends and their dates, blending back into the crowd of the fairies and slithering through the masses to the lounge room. Where she could momentarily escape and have a second to herself without Rosetta’s prying eyes or Midnight’s predatory advances on Terence. Who was she kidding, thinking she’d be able to come here and act like normal? Nothing could ever be normal again, thanks to her. Tonight was just the beginning of what she’d have to live with. 

_____

“How do you think we’re gonna find her out here?” asked Fawn, tightly gripping the sixth and final vial of alcohol. “Half the Hollow’s already on the dance floor.” She had to shout to get Vidia to hear her. Her voice rang in her own ears. 

“She doesn’t exactly blend in,” said Vidia. “Look for a fairy with ill manners and a face that’s waiting to be ripped off.” 

“I’m serious.” Fawn let go of the vial and allowed it to sink deeper into her pocket. “We’re never gonna-” 

“There!” Vidia pointed towards the snack tray. A fairy with a backless royal blue dress and a tight black bun held a cup of punch in her hand and scooped a second cup with her other hand. 

Fawn and Vidia sifted through the sea of fairies as quickly as they could, making their way over to Midnight and putting on their game faces. 

Midnight was about to turn the other way with her cups of punch, but Vidia called out to her. 

“Midnight!” 

The dust keeper fairy startled and nearly dropped her punch. “You scared me,” she gasped. “Give a fairy some warning, won’t you?” 

Vidia remained completely unapologetic. “I’m a loud person. You’ll come to learn that the more time you spend with me.” 

“It’s true,” Fawn supplied. She did her best impression of someone who was vastly indifferent, rolling her eyes and setting her lips in a slight frown. “She’s loud. Also this party blows.” 

“I think it’s  _ after _ the party that everyone’s excited about,” said Midnight, brown eyes sparkling. “And we heard of an after party from a couple of Terence’s friends. Want to come with us?” 

Fawn and Vidia looked at each other. They knew that if their plan worked the way they wanted it to, Midnight would not be attending any after party. 

“Sure,” said Vidia, smiling sickly sweet. “That would be great.” 

“You look amazing, by the way,” said Fawn. “I love your dress.” 

“Cotton made it special for me,” said Midnight. “Everything tonight has been perfect. Even this punch has . . . A bit more of a kick to it than I remember.” The fairy took another sip of her cup, wincing as she did so. “Wow . . . That is really strong.” 

Fawn nodded in approval. 

“Maybe Queen Clarion finally decided to stop banning alcohol,” said Midnight, wiping her mouth. 

Vidia hummed, pretending to be in thought. “That would be a very out-of-character decision, based on how strict she was about the Spring Soiree.” 

Midnight rolled her eyes. “Oh, don’t remind me about that stupid Soiree. I only went because my friends were drinking beforehand, and I only ended up staying for an hour because one of our friends got so trashed we had to leave.” 

“Do you feel a sort of obligation, to take care of and look after your friends?” asked Vidia curiously. Fawn shot her a look, but the fairy ignored her. 

Midnight paused, brown eyes widening. “Um . . . I never really thought about it that way before, if I’m being honest.” 

“I don’t know, you just seem very . . . protective. Which is a good thing,” Vidia added quickly, sensing the tightening of Midnight’s shoulders as a correct cue to back off. 

“You just seem like the type of fairy that will do anything for her friends. Go to any lengths. That can have its own set of drawbacks, you know.” 

Midnight narrowed her eyes. “Like what?” 

“I actually admire fairies who are protective over their friends,” said Fawn, in an attempt to save the day. “It means they don’t want to let their loved ones or their friends fight their battles alone.” 

Midnight’s stature relaxed, and she smiled softly at the pair. “Exactly,” she said. “If someone is hurting and you care about them, then you should want to help them. Simple as that.” 

Fawn smiled at her. 

“Also,” said Midnight, “you should wear pink more often. It’s a good color on you.” 

“Thank you,” Fawn said skeptically, perplexed by the compliment. Midnight was full of surprises, wasn’t she? What benefit did it serve her to compliment Fawn’s dress? 

“Did you two come here with anyone?” Midnight asked. 

Vidia shook her head. “I’m flying solo tonight.” 

“Me too.” 

Midnight’s smile faded. “Oh . . . Well, I don’t really see the point in coming to these things without a date, but . . . that’s great for you guys. Whatever floats your wings, right?” 

Vidia and Fawn both struggled to maintain neutrality on their facial expressions. 

“Actually,” said Vidia, so icily it caused Midnight to take a step back, “I have  _ no _ problem being here without a date. In fact, I have never felt better in my entire life. I don’t know who you think you are to-” 

“Vidia.” 

Fawn grabbed her by the arm, pulling her back. She spoke in low tones in her ear. “She’s supposed to be our new favorite fairy,  _ remember?” _

Vidia shoved Fawn off, clearing her throat and smiling as though she were unaffected. 

“Right. That’s just how I feel. Anyway . . .” Vidia looked at Fawn expectantly. Fawn cocked an eyebrow, confused what the other fairy wanted her to do. 

“There’s something we wanted to  _ give _ you,” Vidia said, louder. 

Fawn snapped out of her trance, in realization. She quickly dug into her pocket and fished out the vial of alcohol, eliciting a gasp from Midnight. Fawn held up the vial, and Midnight eyed it eagerly. 

“What is this?” 

“Consider it a gift,” Vidia said lightly, noticing Midnight’s enthusiastic face. “It’s for you and Terence to share. We want you guys to have fun tonight. Maybe this can help . . . Speed things along.” 

Midnight’s lips curled up in a mischievous smirk. “I am planning on kissing him tonight.” 

Fawn white knuckled the vial. Vidia’s gobsmacked expression betrayed her for two seconds before she managed to get a hold of herself. 

“Are you?” Vidia echoed, high pitched. 

Midnight nodded. “Mhm. Although . . .” Her smirk faded away. “He’s been radiating some uncertain energy tonight. I’ve been sensing that he’s . . . hesitating. Every time I try to get close to him, or say something to suggest I like him, he pulls away.” 

“Hmm.” Vidia pretended to be concerned. “I wonder why that is. You’re a gorgeous girl. He’d be throwing away a perfect opportunity.” 

Midnight narrowed her eyes in thought, before her face brightened back up. “You’re right.” She yanked the bottle out of Fawn’s hand. “I can use this to loosen him up.” 

Fawn looked at Vidia, alarmed. 

“Uh . . .” Even Vidia seemed uncomfortable at this prospect. She, after all, had been joking. “I’m not sure that’s-”

“Oh, nonsense, it’s perfect!” Midnight held the vial up close, cradling it as though it were her saving grace. “I owe you one, guys.” She placed the bottle in her little black purse. “I hope you guys have a great night flying solo and casting your rods in this swarming sea of narrow-minded individuals.” 

Vidia’s eyes widened. 

“I, on the other hand, have got a catch to reel in.” 

She bounced away, grinning from ear to ear like a Clumsy on Christmas Day. 

Vidia gawked after her. 

“I don’t know what we were expecting,” Fawn said, unsure of how her friend would react. “Of course Midnight’s mind would immediately jump to seducing Terence when we gave her the bottle.” 

“I hope she’s seduced by a smack in the face when this is all over,” Vidia spat. 

_____

Tinker Bell looked at herself in the mirror. Her hair fell messily around her face, her bangs were neatly brushed to the side, and her dress fit her figure perfectly. She may have looked physically appealing, but she had never felt worse. 

She delicately gripped her injured arm, picking at the bandage. Tonight was supposed to be about starting over, about letting go of the past and moving on. But she was only sinking further into the quicksand of her own mistakes. 

She thought about Terence and Midnight laughing and making jokes with each other. She drew her hands into fists. She thought about Terence and Midnight dancing, holding each other so intimately. She ran a hand through her bangs, leaning against the wall as her chest fought harder for air. 

She thought about Terence and Midnight kissing. 

Her back slid down the wall until she was in a sitting position. She drew her knees tightly to her chest. She couldn’t be here. She couldn’t be here. 

Just imagining Terence cupping Midnight’s face the same way he had hers, pulling her in and flashing those dashingly blue eyes before he’d put their lips together, was enough to cause her shoulders to tremble. 

Terence only wanted a girl to kiss. To warm his bed, she reminded herself. None of it was real. 

But those blue eyes had seared themselves so permanently into her brain, that they were all she ever saw when she closed her eyes. 

“Didn’t expect to see you here.” 

Tinker Bell lurched backwards so violently that she banged her head hard against the wall. She winced in pain, cradling the back of her hair. Then she looked up. 

Midnight stood over her, wearing a playful smirk. She wore a beautiful backless royal blue piece, and her hair was neatly pulled up in a bun. 

Tinker Bell’s cheeks reddened in humiliation when she realized the position she was currently in. She was hunched over with her knees pulled in. She looked  _ pathetic _ . 

She struggled to get to her feet. 

“M-Midnight,” she said, willing herself to sound stronger than she felt. 

Midnight chuckled, throwing her head back as her body was overtaken by glee. 

“You are a sight for sore eyes, Tinker Bell.” 

Tink gripped her arm and glared at her. 

Midnight drew closer, approaching the fairy like a predator to its prey. “You know, I should give you a round of applause. You were a worthy opponent.” 

Tink leaned back against the wall, silently commanding her heart to slow down. “What are you talking about?” she asked with a level voice. 

“He always said how beautiful and smart and funny he thought you were.” Midnight shook her head in disapproval. “Though personally, I don’t see it.” 

“Do you want something? Why are you here?” Tinker Bell asked. 

“But you should have realized I’d come out on top in the end,” Midnight said lightly, as casually as one would mention the weather. 

“On top?” Tink furrowed her eyebrows in confusion. “What do you mean, on top? This isn’t a game, Midnight.” 

“Maybe it wasn’t to you, but it was to me . . . And clearly, we both know who won.” 

Tink’s mouth flew open. 

“Go ahead, try and tell him. See who he’ll believe.” 

Midnight smiled, raking her eyes up and down Tink’s dress. 

“The sad part is, you actually do look somewhat presentable tonight. I’ll give you that.” 

“Just go away.” Tink wanted the wall to swallow her whole. 

“But looks aren’t going to do much for you when I take him out on the dance floor tonight and kiss him with all the passion I have, for everyone to see. Especially you.” 

Tink placed a hand over her racing chest, scowling at the other fairy. 

“This is so much  _ fun.” _ Midnight laughed delightedly. “But you know, the ball was only part of my game. Getting Terence to realize what a grave mistake he made, associating with the likes of  _ you _ . . . Now that’s my real victory.” 

“Terence is twice the fairy you’ll ever be,” Tink seethed. “And it doesn’t matter how long it’ll take him to figure it out. A week, a month. A year? Because he will, eventually. And when he does, you won’t have anyone left, Midnight. You’ll be all alone.” 

Midnight frowned at her. Tink dared her chances to take a step closer. 

“So what are you going to do then? Pick a new victim? Repeat the cycle over until they also realize how conniving and manipulative you are? You’ll get bored so fast you won’t know what to do with yourself.” 

“Tinker Bell, let me assure you.” Midnight squeezed her shoulder tightly, looking at her darkly. “Putting undeserving fairies in their rightful place will _never_ get boring.” She let go of her shoulder, but did not back away. 

“You deserved everything you had coming for you. You had your chance with Terence, and you blew it. You only have yourself to blame.” 

“It isn’t my fault he lied to me about going to the ball with you.” 

Midnight’s eyes widened. “You . . . He . . . What?” 

“He lied. I found out he was going with you, and when I confronted him about it, he denied it.” 

“When did you ask him?” 

“The day I was in the hospital, the same day I came to the dust depot. That’s why I said I already knew he was going to the ball with you. I just . . . For a minute, I thought he wasn’t. Until I found out he lied.” 

Midnight gasped quietly. “It all makes sense now . . .” 

_ “What  _ makes sense?” 

Midnight straightened her posture, smirk growing. “Nothing you need to worry your pretty little mind about.” 

“Tell me.” 

Midnight rolled her eyes. “You are pushy . . . Fine, I may as well . . . I’m not sure what harm it would do now.” She looked Tink in the eye. 

“The truth is, he  _ did _ say no to me. At first.” 

Tink felt her chest freeze over. 

“The first time I asked him to the ball, he said no.” 

_ “What?”  _

“It was after that dreadful hospital visit where he  _ took you in _ and waited  _ hours _ for you, without so much as a thank you, just for you to throw him out and call  _ him _ a liar, when we decided to go together.” 

Midnight smiled. “He came crawling back to me like a lost little lamb. He was so  _ devastated,  _ Tinker Bell.” 

Her eyes widened, heart clambering in her chest. She shook her head back and forth, as if the motion itself would assuage the trepidation of Midnight’s words. 

“No . . .” 

“It was like his heart was . . . Broken.” Midnight continued slowly walking around the room as though she owned it. 

“The way he talked about you . . . He had nothing but kind things to say, from the bottom of his heart. Until you shattered it.” 

Tink felt her world begin to spin, and crash, and burn. 

“He always talked about how wonderful he thought you were, how much you made him laugh. He would get this look in his eye whenever he talked about you, like . . . Like he . . .” 

Tink swallowed thickly and looked down at the ground as a wave of shame washed over her. 

Midnight’s face scrunched up into resentful jealousy. She clutched tightly onto her black purse. “Like he loved you.” 

Tinker Bell immediately looked up at Midnight, mouth open in shock and eyes dangerously close to watering. 

As quickly as Midnight’s calm facade had crumbled, it rematerialized. Into an even crisper, colder version of itself. “But that was then.” 

She stepped closer to Tinker Bell, smirking ever so slightly. “And this is now. I guess we’ll never know, will we.” 

She swiftly exited the room. 

Tinker Bell leaned back on the wall, folding her arms tightly as her shoulders rose and fell. Rose and fell. 

This was all her fault. From the beginning. 

Terence would never forgive her. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> thanks for reading, see ya on the next one  
> -A


	16. 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> I like to call this one the bad before the good

With every 30 minute increment that passed the fairies began to stagger their steps and slur their speech slightly more. Not before long, fairies were falling into each other and knocking each other down on the dance floor, collapsing in heaps of laughter and accumulating scrapes that wouldn’t be felt until the following morning. 

Fairies spilled glasses of punch on each other, staining every surface the liquid hit. Loud conversations drowned out the music. The ball had transformed from a mildly classy event into a full-on rager. 

Vidia and Fawn stood to the side drinking in the damage like they would their morning tea. 

“I have to hand it to you, Vidia.” Fawn continued looking around at the chaos surrounding them. “This might actually work.” 

Vidia cocked an eyebrow at her friend’s lack of faith. “Did you expect anything less from me?” 

Fawn smiled, shaking her head at her friend’s antics. “I didn’t mean it like that.” 

She looked around the dance floor and found Iridessa standing next to a handsome, tanned young sparrowman with dark brown hair. 

“Look!” she exclaimed, pointing to the light fairy. “That must be Sage.” 

Vidia whistled in appreciation. “Wow . . . Iridessa’s got some game.” 

“Now I understand why she was so nervous about him.” 

“He’s a cutie.” 

Fawn sighed. “If those two can work it out, and they barely even know each other, then why can’t Tink and Terence?” 

Vidia looked at her. “There’s a huge difference between crushing on someone and falling in love with them.” 

“So you think Iridessa’s just crushing?” 

“Tink and Terence have history, dimension. What they have is so real it scares them both.” Vidia adjusted her bun. She had acquired Fawn’s full attention. 

“With Iridessa and Sage, everything is brand new. There is no risky move, no big thing to be lost. Tink and Terence, however, have everything to lose. That’s why they can’t work it out.” 

Fawn toyed with the silky ribbon in her hair. “I never thought about it that way before.” 

Vidia chuckled. “Until those two managed to screw things up so badly that all of us got involved, neither did I.” 

“Have you ever been in love, Vidia?” 

The question threw her off guard. “Um . . . I don’t think so, actually.” 

“But you’ve had boyfriends.” 

“I wouldn’t exactly call my summer fling with Azure _love,_ if you know what I mean.” 

“But you’ve been intimate with other fairies, had relationships . . . Was any of that real to you?” 

Vidia folded an arm across her chest. “Define real.” 

“Real is when you care about another fairy, for more than just their looks.” 

“Are you saying I only care about fairies for their looks?” 

“I’m asking _you._ If you’ve ever cared for a fairy for more than their looks.” 

“Okay, sure, let’s go with that. I _cared_ for Azure. For a long time. But then he cheated on me, so now he’s irrelevant. End of story.” Vidia’s tone grew sharper. 

“Just because he hurt you doesn’t mean you didn’t love him,” said Fawn. 

“I _didn’t_ love him,” Vidia said, louder. Fawn flinched. 

“I’m sorry,” Vidia sighed. 

“It’s fine.” 

“No, it’s not.” 

“Really, it’s fine.” 

“Fawn . . .”

“I shouldn’t have brought it up. It’s okay if you don’t want to talk about it.” 

“It’s not that.” 

“Then what is it?” 

“Nothing.” 

“Tell me.” 

“Seriously, it’s nothing-” 

“You can tell me-” 

“I feel like you’re always the one helping everyone else out!” 

The outburst was louder to Vidia’s own ears than she’d anticipated. Fawn’s eyes widened, and she took a step back. 

“And you’re always everyone else’s shoulder to cry on,” Vidia continued, though much quieter than before. 

Fawn only stared with shock written all over her face. 

“But who’s there for you?” Vidia looked earnestly into the other fairy’s eyes. She realized that Fawn was always bending over backwards for others but never reaching forward for herself. 

“Who’s there to pick you up when you fall apart?” 

Fawn opened her mouth to speak, but before any words came out Vidia was tackled from behind. 

A long, thin set of arms hugged her tightly, and a body sank into hers as though it were having severe trouble standing on its own. 

_“Vidia,”_ a voice slurred into her ear. 

Vidia tensed up, immediately recognizing the speaker as her ex-boyfriend Azure. With as much force as she could muster she wriggled herself free from his iron, cobra-like grip. He yelped and staggered back with hazy, unfocused eyes. 

“Whoa!” Fawn reached forward and grabbed onto the stumbling sparrowman to keep him from falling over. He planted a hand on her shoulder and blinked dazedly. 

“Azure?” Vidia couldn’t keep the surprise out of her voice, or peel her eyes away from his intoxicated yet attractive form. He was built slender but tall, with dainty facial features. 

“Y-Yeah, it’s me, is’me.” Azure’s bright blue hair was matted with sweat against his tanned forehead. He let go of Fawn and stumbled into Vidia again, wrapping his arms around her waist. Vidia gasped and pushed against him but he would not budge. 

“Azure, get _off.”_ Vidia squeezed her eyes shut and tensed up in his strong grip. Azure slumped over and buried his head into her shoulder. 

“I miss you, I miss you so much,” he murmured, puffs of breath dampening her skin. 

Vidia felt revolted. Disgust curled in her chest. 

“I want- I want you back, b-baby.” Azure lifted his head up with considerable difficulty, panting hard and leaning forward on Vidia for support. His pale green eyes focused on a spot just above her forehead. 

“You’re drunk.” Vidia felt herself stiffen further at his shameless desperation. At the fact that he could only summon the courage to talk to her once he drank. 

Azure giggled. “Noo ‘m not.” He held onto Vidia tighter, unrelenting. “I jus, I jus wanna talk, baby, thas’all.” 

With newfound strength Vidia pushed Azure off her once again. He stumbled backwards, barely able to keep himself upright. 

“I am _not_ your baby.” 

“Please, Vidia.” He swayed on his feet. “Gimme a chance. I just wanna talk. Please.” 

“You lost your chance to talk to me when you slept with another girl.” 

“It was a mistake!” 

“How long, Azure?” 

His unfocused eyes landed on her momentarily. 

“How long before I found out?” she pressed. 

Azure tried stepping closer to Vidia, but Fawn blocked his way. 

“Hey,” she commanded. “That’s enough.” 

“Fawn,” said Vidia, feeling embarrassed that her friend was coming to her defense, “I got this.” 

“Look at him.” Fawn aggressively gestured to the drunken mess of a fairy before them. “He needs water and a bed. He is in no position to be reasoned with.” 

“I swear, it was a mistake, Vidia” Azure said again. “I don’t love Opal. I love _you.”_

Vidia’s heart stopped. 

“I always have.” 

It was hard to detect sincerity in his tone when so many lies had slipped so easily off his tongue. Vidia wanted to believe him. But she couldn’t. 

“How dare you,” Fawn growled. “Look at the state you’re in. Trying to drop a bomb on my friend like that? Who do you think you are?” 

“I mean it,” he said. He looked at Vidia, green eyes pleading. “I should’ve never pushed you away, Vidia. I’m so sorry.” 

“Azure, please don’t do this.” Vidia felt her resolve crumbling. 

“Azure? Azure!” A shrill voice pierced Vidia’s eardrums. An admittedly beautiful fairy with a brown bob and bangs marched up to the group. 

“Opal?” Azure looked at her with wide eyes. 

“Just what do you think you’re doing?” Opal pointed a finger at Azure, who tensed up at the sight of her. 

“I-I’m just talking-”

“Just talking to your ex?” The brunette scoffed, lips curling in disdain. “Like I’m going to believe that.” 

“Seriously, you can have him,” Vidia said, gesturing to Azure’s swaying form. “He’s all yours.” 

“You, let’s go.” Opal grabbed onto his arm and began to lead him away. Then she turned back around. “And you.” She pointed at Vidia, seething. “Stay away from him.” 

“Gladly.” Vidia glared at her scaldingly. Opal narrowed her eyes at her before retreating with a stumbling Azure who now gripped onto her for support. 

Once they were out of sight Vidia’s shoulders deflated, and a sagging frown took over her face. 

“Well, that was unexpected,” she said flatly. Fawn frowned at her. 

“Vidia, I’m-” 

“We need to find Queen Clarion.” Vidia erased all traces of emotion from her face and tone. “And get this show on the road before she shuts the whole ball down.” 

"But shouldn't we talk about what just-" 

"We're on a time crunch, here." Vidia glared at Fawn in a way that warned her not to press her on the subject any further. Fawn had no choice but to oblige. 

"Okay . . . But don't think I'm forgetting about this." 

Vidia frowned. "I know you won't. That's the problem." 

_____

A startled Queen Clarion flapped her wings behind her in fright as the fifth pair of fairies that evening stumbled into her gracelessly, nearly spilling their drinks in the process. 

“Goodness gracious!” exclaimed Fairy Mary. “Watch where you’re going!” 

Unaware of who they’d bumped into, the fairies only laughed. 

“My sincerest apologies,” one of them slurred sarcastically, sloshing their drink in their glass. 

“C’mon, les’ go dance.” The other one pulled him away, laughing merrily as she staggered into him. Then they were gone, blended back into the crowd as though they had never been there. 

“That’s the fourth time in the past half hour.” Fairy Mary’s brown eyes widened. 

“Fifth, actually.” Queen Clarion frowned grimly. “This ball is getting out of control. If the fairies continue to act this way I’ll have no choice but to end it prematurely.” 

“This is far worse than usual,” said Fairy Mary. “Normally it’s a select bunch of fairies stirring up trouble but now I’m seeing the ones who would never even touch a drink stumbling around and falling down.” 

“Someone’s going to get hurt.” Queen Clarion switched her gaze between a concerned Fairy Mary and the deck packed with chaotic conversations and clumsy dances. 

“What if it was . . . Calculated?” asked Fairy Mary. 

Queen Clarion focused her sole attention on her advisor. Fairy Mary faltered under the Queen’s intense stare, knowing her speculation had no empirical evidence to stand on. 

“Calculated?” 

“Yes, what if it was . . . A set up? What if somebody did this on purpose?” 

“Are you suggesting that a fairy intentionally sabotaged our ball for his or her own amusement?” 

“I’m not sure what the motive was,” said Fairy Mary, knowing she was evading the real question. But when Queen Clarion tilted her head, she knew she had to answer. 

“But think about it! There are fairies out there that I have never seen drink before, who are utterly _hammered_. This couldn’t have just been an extra fun get-together before the ball. Someone wanted to do this.” 

“That is a serious accusation, Fairy Mary.” 

“It makes more sense than _every_ fairy showing up drunk!” 

Queen Clarion narrowed her blue eyes. 

“But of course, there’s no way to figure out who it actually is,” Fairy Mary said, back-tracking. “So you’re still better off shutting it down. It’s the safest option we have.” 

Before Queen Clarion could respond, two fairies flew up to the pair with somber expressions. They were two fairies the Queen had gotten to know quite well over the years: Fawn and Vidia. 

“Hello, Queen Clarion,” said Fawn. 

Vidia began to bow respectfully. Fawn copied her motions. 

“Good evening, ladies,” Queen Clarion said crisply. She took a moment to admire their appearances. Vidia wore a slim-fitted, silky royal blue pantsuit, and her long, black hair was tied up in a messy bun. Fawn wore a short, pink rose petal dress with ribbons woven throughout her wavy, brown hair. 

“Good evening, your Highness,” said Vidia. 

“As delighted as I am to see you both, I’m afraid I will not be able to speak to you at this time,” said Queen Clarion. “I have some urgent matters to attend to that cannot wait.” 

“Urgent matters about why everyone’s so drunk?” Vidia asked. 

The Queen’s eyes widened. Fairy Mary’s face hardened. 

“I will regain control of the situation,” Queen Clarion said with leveled patience. “And see forth that whoever is responsible will be punished accordingly.” She glanced at Fairy Mary. “We are highly suspicious that tonight was not an accident.” 

“We have some information that we think you should know,” said Fawn. 

Queen Clarion raised her eyebrows. 

“We know who’s responsible for tonight,” said Vidia. “And we can prove it.” 

_____

Loud echoes of noise swum in Terence’s ears. His palms were sweating, and settled unsteadily on Midnight’s back. She yanked rather than pulled him close, wrapping her arms tightly around his neck. Their foreheads were almost touching. He felt like he was suffocating. 

She giggled, noticing his uncomfortable expression, before pulling away to rest her hands on his shoulders and grant him what little space she deemed he deserved. 

“If I didn’t know any better, I’d say you were nervous,” she jested, swaying her body back and forth with the beat. Terence allowed Midnight to take the lead as her hands rubbed his shoulders soothingly. 

He wanted to kick himself. 

Here he was, at the ball dancing with a beautiful fairy who evidently expressed affection for him, and he couldn’t even bring himself to enjoy it. It was pitiful, really, how tightly he clung onto the mere memory of another fairy who no longer cared about him. 

Every time Midnight smiled, he thought of her. When he had made her smile twice as big. 

Every time Midnight laughed, he thought of her. When his jokes had caused the crinkles in her eyes. 

Tonight, surrounded by everyone, all he could think about was her. 

“What do I have to be nervous about?” Terence asked, chuckling slightly to ease the tension curling tight in his tendons. 

“I don’t know, you tell me.” Midnight smiled slyly at him. She attempted to move her hips to the rhythm, but her smile faded when Terence stood still instead of moving with the beat. She halted her flow, peering at Terence as though inspecting a problem. As though she were trying to see through him. 

“Is it all these fairies acting wasted? Which I’m pretty sure is because of the super-strong punch they’re serving? Whoever’s idea it was, I don’t know how they managed to get it past Queen Clarion but I am impressed.” 

“I was wondering what was going on,” said Terence, relieved for the change of subject. “Because that one glass of punch you got us already gave me a buzz.” 

Midnight chuckled. “Are you a lightweight, Terence?” 

“I don’t know, but I’ve almost slipped on someone’s spilled drink like three times tonight,” he said, deflecting the question since he rationed that the answer was fairly obvious. “I’m about to start flying for the majority of the night, even if the other fairy is standing right in front of me.” 

Midnight laughed, and he was again reminded of Tinker Bell. His chest tightened. 

“Even me?” she asked. 

“Especially you,” he joked. He figured an agreeable sense of humor was the least he could provide after how awkward he’d acted throughout the night. Her advances on him had been anything but subtle, and he’d realized about five minutes into their evening that everything he’d told his friends about Midnight was a lie. He had only been trying to convince them he was over Tinker Bell. 

Which he absolutely was not. 

From the moment he and Midnight had walked through the doors he had begun roaming his eyes around the venue in an attempt to find Tink. But under Midnight’s watchful gaze, it was not an easy task. He had yet to see her. 

The last thing he wanted to do was lead Midnight on, but she hadn’t left him a lot of room to say no. She had barely left his side all night. Now she clung onto his arms and pressed her body uncomfortably close to his out on the dance floor. 

If he were in a regular state of mind he might have worked up the courage to have come clean to her by now, but the alcohol flowing through his system muddled his judgement. It told him it was better to keep Midnight content for now than to start a fight. 

However, the side of the sword that faced him said that Tinker Bell could be here dancing with another sparrowman right now. His insides roared with the crackling flames of searing hot jealousy. Just the thought of his Tinker Bell pressed close to the body of another, dancing and holding his hand, made him feel physically ill. 

Not _his,_ he reminded himself, resenting his old habits for springing back up so quickly. He couldn’t claim possession to someone that had never belonged to him in the first place. 

“Even if I said I have a surprise for you?” asked Midnight, drawing him back to reality. 

“You have a surprise? For me?” Terence asked dumbly. His thoughts had just catalyzed a whirlwind of emotions stirring inside him. It made keeping up with reality considerably more difficult. 

“Yes, you,” said Midnight, peering at him closely to see if he was joking or not. She finally let go of him and opened her black purse, sifting through its contents. She pulled out a small, clear vial and slipped it discreetly to Terence. 

His eyes widened. “Where did you get this?” 

“A friend gave it to me,” she said smugly. 

“Which friend?” 

Her eyes traveled to the floor. 

“Who was it?” he pressed, curiosity winning over his caution. 

Midnight looked back up at him. “If I tell you, you have to promise not to say anything.” 

“My lips are sealed.” 

“You promise?” 

Terence chuckled. “I promise.” 

Midnight leaned in closer. “It was from Fawn and Vidia.” 

Terence reeled back, mouth dropping open in shock. “What?”

“They came forward to me a few days ago and told me that they’re done being Tinker Bell’s friend,” she said, closing back up her purse. 

“They gave this to me as a peace offering, which I gladly accepted. They know the way to my heart better than most of my real friends do.” 

“Wait a minute . . .” Terence felt his heart start to pick up in worry. “Tink’s friends are turning on her? Why?” 

“What do you mean, ‘why?’ Look at the way she treated you; do you honestly think she treats those girls any better? It was only a matter of time.” Midnight’s hands settled back on his shoulders, sliding up and down his forearms. She began swaying slightly once again, and he had no choice but to follow her rhythm. 

“If you ask me, she deserved everything that happened to her.” 

“But why Fawn and Vidia specifically?” Terence asked, riddled with confusion. 

Midnight shrugged. “Guess they were the first ones to figure out what kind of fairy she really is. She’s mean, and manipulative, and only cares about herself. We don’t need that kind of toxicity in our lives.” 

She looked at Terence deep in the eye. “And we don’t have to worry about her anymore. Because we’re here to have fun, and . . .” She smirked. “You honestly look like you could use a drink.” 

She was right. He could. 

He let go of her waist and held up the vial of alcohol to examine it. Was he really going to do this? He twisted off the cap, smelling its contents. He wrinkled his nose in disgust. 

“Delightful, isn’t it,” she said. 

“I think I’m going to get something to mix it with,” he said. 

“Oh, I usually drink it straight,” Midnight said oh-so casually. “Unless you’re scared, of course.” 

“Scared?” Terence feigned nonchalance. “Why would I be scared?” 

Midnight’s smirk grew. She leaned in close and whispered quietly in his ear, “Show, don’t tell.” 

She pulled away, and Terence found himself holding up the vial to his lips as though on autopilot. Midnight’s eyes remained fixated on him as he downed the contents of the vial in one strained gulp. 

He squinted his eyes shut as a burning sensation swallowed his throat whole, spilling down his esophagus. The warmth was everywhere. On his tongue, his teeth, his chest. It consumed him. Immediately he felt the effects of the liquor begin to hit him. The music grew thicker and louder in his ears. Midnight’s face became blurred around the edges, but not in a bad way. He felt his body begin to move with the music. 

He handed Midnight the empty vial, and she put it back in her purse. “Impressed you managed to do that in one swig,” she said. 

“Honestly, I am, too.” 

His hands found their place on her waist again, and they swayed back and forth. Midnight took a bold step and wrapped her arms around the back of his neck, pushing her chest flush to his. She smiled softly. 

“How are you feeling?” 

“That was . . .” Terence closed his eyes, feeling momentarily dizzy. He opened them back up. Midnight was even closer. “That burned. A lot.” 

Midnight laughed. Her breath tickled his nose. If he closed his eyes he could almost picture Tink . . . 

But if he kept drinking, he could forget about her. 

“That does tend to happen with alcohol sometimes,” she said snarkily. “You don’t really drink a lot, do you?” 

“I drink with the guys every now and then, but never like this. This is nice.” Words left his lips smoother as the potent liquor slowly lowered his filter. 

“Sometimes change can be good.” Midnight adjusted her hands, running one of them slowly up the back of his neck, creeping toward his lower hairline. 

“Change?” Terence echoed, unable to stop her from drawing in closer, from taking her free hand and cupping his jaw. He froze, unable to react, unable to defend himself. 

The last thing he saw was her sultry smile before he closed his eyes and felt her breath mix with his as she leaned in closer, touching their foreheads. But before she could press her lips against his, a voice sounded from behind. 

“Midnight?” 

Midnight jumped away from Terence so quickly he staggered slightly on his feet. Terence looked up with hazy eyes to see none other than Queen Clarion standing before them, wearing a most unhappy expression on her face. 

“Y-Your Highness!” Midnight exclaimed. 

“Midnight, I am going to need you to come with me,” said the Queen calmly. 

She looked at the pair, seeming to notice the varying states of intoxication between the two. 

“Terence,” she greeted, eyeing the sparrowman suspiciously, “how are you doing tonight?” 

“Doing well, thank you,” he said politely. 

Midnight furrowed her eyebrows in confusion at the Queen. “What’s going on here?”

Queen Clarion looked affronted. “I would have hoped you’d at least have the decency to be honest.” 

“Honest about what?” An edge of worry crept into her tone. Terence could tell that Midnight was fighting hard to contain it. 

Queen Clarion’s frown deepened. “About spiking the punch tonight.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story's approaching a close. I only have a couple more chapters planned, and then I'll probably do an epilogue of some sorts to tie everything up. It's been a fantastic journey interacting with all of you especially my readers on ffn, idk if any of u are over here but if u are special s/o to you for talking to me on there and interacting with my story so animatedly. Means the frickin WORLD to me
> 
> Anyways thanks as always for reading, and I'll see you on the next one  
> -A


	17. 17

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A mix of things, I suppose

Midnight stood baffled before the Queen, outraged and confused at the accusation. 

“Spiked . . . The punch?” 

The Queen nodded quietly. 

Midnight scoffed. 

“You think I _spiked_ the punch . . . You really think _I_ did this?” 

“That is for you and I to talk about in private.” Queen Clarion’s blue eyes glared chilling daggers into her own. “Come, let’s fly.” 

Midnight’s eyes widened, and she turned to Terence for support. He looked awkwardly between her and the Queen. 

“I didn’t do this,” she told him. 

“I really don’t know what’s going on at all,” he said. 

“Terence, I’ve been with you this whole time! Tell her I didn’t do it.” 

Terence looked at the Queen. Then back at Midnight. 

“Tell her!” 

“I-” 

“Terence, this does not concern you,” said the Queen coldly. “This is for us to discuss alone. Midnight, if you’ll come with me-” 

“I’m not going anywhere with you!” Midnight’s fists shook with anger. She was aware that the punishment for direct disobedience to the Queen was severe, but rage for being wrongly accused of a crime overtook her self control. 

Queen Clarion blinked in surprise, but otherwise looked relatively unaffected by the outburst. 

“It would be in your best interest to do as I say,” she advised none too kindly. 

“Your Highness, this is a mistake. I didn’t spike the punch.” Midnight’s voice had raised about half an octave. “I would never do something like that.” She looked at Terence again, gesturing to him. 

“I’ve only been with this handsome young man the entire night. He can vouch for me!” 

Terence didn’t look pleased at all that she called him handsome. In fact, he didn’t even smile. 

“Terence, you will do right to stay out of this,” advised the Queen. 

Terence looked at Midnight helplessly. “I’m sorry,” he said, and he sounded sincere. But clearly not enough to actually help her. “It’s out of my hands. Go talk to her. I’ll be here waiting for you when you get back.” 

Midnight sighed, rubbing an exasperated hand down her face. _“Fine.”_

She glared scathingly at the Queen, who paid her no mind as she led her away from the commotion of the ball over to a private corner outside the deck by a patch of shrubbery to talk. 

Midnight saw Fairy Mary waiting for them, and her heart skipped a beat as her chest filled with dread. Whenever the two worked together, someone was certainly in trouble. 

“Midnight,” Fairy Mary greeted without a touch of friendliness. “There is something we need to discuss.” 

“She already told me,” Midnight said, sounding mildly panicked as she gestured to the Queen. “You think I spiked your punch? I would never even _think_ about doing something that absurd, I-” 

“Save it.” Fairy Mary crossed her arms and frowned. “I am very disappointed in you. Queen Clarion and I and countless other fairies have been working tirelessly on this ball for weeks. For someone like you, with such a respectable reputation and honorable work ethic, to come along and try to destroy it out of nowhere is utterly deplorable.” 

“Fairy Mary,” said Midnight, carefully calm. “Please, believe me. I didn’t do this.” 

“Again, Midnight, you are only making yourself look worse by lying,” said Queen Clarion. 

“I would have expected this from some of your coworkers, like that Stone or Bolt, but not from you,” said Fairy Mary, twinged with dismay. 

“I’m not lying, please, believe me,” begged Midnight. 

Queen Clarion and Fairy Mary exchanged a look. It made Midnight nervous. 

“What is it?” she asked. 

“Someone already came forward,” said the Queen. 

“Who?” Midnight asked quietly. 

“That is not your concern.” 

“It actually _is_ my concern.” 

“Midnight-” 

“Why are you so sure it was me? You don’t even have proof.” 

“Open your bag, please.” 

The Queen said it calmly, but not even her tone could gate the simmering anger shining deep in her eyes. 

Midnight froze. Her hands gripped her purse tightly as she swallowed. “B-But Your Highness-” 

“You heard me. Open. Your bag.” 

Midnight knew what sat beneath the surface of that black fabric. Her insides rippled with dread. She pictured that sneaky little vial sitting on top of everything else, ready to expose her. It taunted her. 

“Your Highness, is that really necessary?” she asked, playing it casual. She even threw in a chuckle for good measure. 

“I thought my word held a little more value around here.” 

“Let me remind you how little damage it takes to devalue somebody’s word.” The Queen kept her eyes trained steadily on Midnight’s purse. “Especially when someone whose word means far more to me comes forward first.” 

Midnight’s fingers shook as she opened her purse. She looked straight at Queen Clarion, masking her inner apprehension and dread as best as she could. There was alcohol in her purse. That would put her in a dangerously compromised position. She might not be able to talk her way out of this one. 

_Averted gaze means weakness. Averted gaze means weakness._ She repeated it to herself over and over until she believed it. 

Slowly, as though in fairy theatre, she stiffly pulled open her purse. 

“Let me see.” Queen Clarion’s calm yet firm voice rang in her ears. 

Midnight handed her the bag. 

Queen Clarion pulled out the vial and examined it closely, her frown deepening. This vial now held Midnight’s fate in the palm of its hands. And the readings did not look good. 

Queen Clarion looked at Midnight as though she were a very young child. Her blood ran cold. 

“I’d ask you to explain yourself, but this really speaks for itself.” 

“Your Highness, please, I _can_ explain,” insisted Midnight. “Two fairies gave me that vial earlier tonight, and I shared it with Terence. I didn’t use it to spike the punch.” 

“Drinking alcohol at these events is forbidden. You know that.” 

“With all due respect, your Majesty, isn’t this a conversation you should be having with the fairies who _gave_ it to me?” 

“I’m not concerned with who gave it to you. There is a sizable difference between having a little drink at a party and spiking the communal punch so strong the entire venue suffers from it.” 

“So when they have it, it’s just a ‘drink at a party’ but when _I_ have it it’s a crime?” Midnight exclaimed. “How does that seem fair, your Majesty?” 

“I just explained to you that you used it for far more than inebriating yourself. I don’t think you understand the consequences of your actions. Someone could get seriously hurt.” 

“I know this makes me look really bad,” said Midnight. “But I swear to you, I didn’t do it.” 

“Why should we believe you when the proof is right in front of us?” asked Fairy Mary. 

“Wouldn’t it take _way_ more than one vial to spike the punch this badly?” Midnight said testily. 

“How do we know you haven’t thrown the rest of them away?” Queen Clarion retorted. 

“Throw them away?” Midnight exclaimed. “Tell me then, Your Highness, why would I still have _one_ vial left if I threw them all away?” 

Queen Clarion looked at Fairy Mary again. 

“See?” Midnight pointed at them. “It doesn’t make any sense!” 

Queen Clarion sighed. “Midnight, please try to understand. It doesn’t look well for you that two fairies have already come forward about this, and we’ve found a vial of alcohol in your purse just as they described.” 

“Whoever it is, they’re trying to frame me,” said Midnight. That was when she realized. 

Fawn and Vidia had given her the alcohol. They were the only ones who knew she had it. 

Tinker Bell had set her up. 

“Oh, that little pixie is going to _pay,”_ she seethed, locking her jaw and fisting her bag so tightly it could’ve broken. 

“Who is going to pay?” asked Queen Clarion, sounding worried. 

Midnight looked her dead in the eye. “No one you need to worry about.” 

Queen Clarion was going to speak, but Fairy Mary was faster. 

“Midnight, as much as I’m sure as you’d love to erase the events of tonight, we cannot. You will face the consequences of what you did as every other innocent fairy is right now.” 

“Fairy Mary,” said Midnight, “some other fairy had intentions far more malicious than mine. I was set up. I don’t know how else I can get you to believe me.” 

Fairy Mary pursed her lips. She was silent, and her eyes were cold. 

Queen Clarion spoke emotionlessly, “You will report at high noon to my chambers tomorrow to receive the details of your punishment. We will not discuss this matter any further tonight. Goodnight, Midnight.” 

She flew away. Golden pixie flakes lingered in her wake. 

Midnight looked at Fairy Mary, who glared at her distrustingly. She gulped. 

“Fairy Mary, I swear I didn’t- Please don’t do this.” Midnight felt her heart beating faster as her reality sank in. For the first time in her life, she had been the one who was framed. She didn’t know what to do. 

Fairy Mary only shook her head dismally before flying away. 

“Wait!” she called to nothing and no one. 

Her blood boiled. Midnight had carefully cultivated her relationship with the Queen over the years, and in the span of a couple minutes all her efforts were shattered to pieces solely because of Tinker Bell. The Queen would never trust her again. 

Midnight growled frustratedly and began flying toward the lounge room inside of the deck. Tinker Bell wouldn’t leave this ball unscathed if Midnight had anything to do with it. 

____

Tink had flown herself to the furthest corner of the room and turned toward the wall away from fairies’ nosy glances. Shame washed over her like a river, coating every inch of her skin. Her shoulders shook as she wept. 

She cried quietly for losing Terence. For being so reckless with his feelings and not treating them with care and kindness as she should have. 

Her friends had surely noticed her absence by now. Guilt engulfed her. After all their kindness of getting a custom-made dress for her, she couldn’t even pretend to have a good time? 

She just missed him, so much. She missed his smile, his chuckle, the way he held her close late at night. She ached for him with every bone in her body. 

Yet she had been the one to push him away, right into Midnight’s waiting arms. She had been the one to lose her temper, yet again, and yell at him before listening to him. Spewing mean, heartless words that not even the kindest fairy could forgive. She had been the one to let her best friend go. 

She tensed up and swallowed a sniffle as she heard footsteps approach her. 

_Please be going the other way, anywhere but here_. 

The footsteps faded. She breathed out a sigh of relief. She couldn’t expect to keep this whole room to herself forever, but right now it was much appreciated. 

She reflected back on how cruel she’d been to Terence. She had felt so jealous, so worried that his affection had not matched hers. Even though in hindsight the idea was ludicrous. Of course it had. She just hadn’t seen it. Why hadn’t she looked closer? 

And why had she built a wall between them so quickly? What was she so worried about? That he didn’t love her back? 

Her eyes popped open, and she snapped her head up as she realized. 

She loved him. 

It explained all the raging jealousy at the idea of him being with another girl, the possessiveness she felt towards him, the fluttery feelings in her stomach whenever he kissed her. It all made sense. She _loved_ him. 

And she had lost her chance to be with him. 

Suddenly on high alert, Tinker Bell dried her eyes and rose to her feet. She needed to tell somebody about this. Right now. 

Rosetta and Silvermist were with their dates, and Iridessa was with Sage so that left either Fawn or Vidia. Whoever she reached first, Tink would be fine with. As long as Terence wasn’t around to listen in, she would tell them. 

She flew outside the room, wringing her hands together tensely. She landed and decided to walk down a corridor that connected her to the outer deck of the venue. She needed to gather her strength, so she wouldn’t run away at the last second when Vidia or Fawn asked her what was wrong. 

Because there was no conceivable way to convey the depths of her misdoings to her friends. There was no swift or easy shortcut to evade the severity of her mistakes. 

She continued down the hallway, swallowing thickly and nervously picking at loose strands of her hair. She began to second guess herself. What use did it have, anyway, telling Fawn or Vidia she loved him? They wouldn’t be able to help her. 

Why dampen their evening and burden them with her feelings just because she couldn’t figure it out when it had actually mattered? She couldn’t tell them now. She couldn’t tell anyone. 

In spite of herself, she thought about possibly telling Terence. A burning want clawed deep inside her. Stronger than she anticipated. She imagined running up to him, pulling him somewhere far away from Midnight’s prying eyes, and telling him everything. How sorry she was for the way she’d acted, how desperately she wanted a second chance, and how above all else, she just wanted her friend back. 

Because friendship with Terence was infinitely better than no Terence. The constant ache in her chest from his absence could prove that in a heartbeat. 

However, before she could complete her journey through the hallway and begin scanning the floor for Fawn and Vidia, her excavation was cut abruptly short. 

In a rush, someone flew up to her and grabbed her uninjured arm tightly, pushing her hard against the wall, back flaring up in dull pain, all within the blinding flash of a second. 

Tink pushed with all her strength against her captor, but her body did not budge. She was locked in place. She blinked rapidly and looked up at the fairy who had grabbed her. 

A set of familiar, honey brown eyes narrowed down at her, with lips set in a tight frown. Midnight glared at her as her fist shook. 

“You set me up. Did you really think I wouldn’t find out it was you?” 

“Wait a second, pause,” said Tink, heart hammering heavily. “What are you talking about?” 

“Come on, Tinker Bell, quit the act. You sent your friends to act nice to me and give alcohol to us as a 'gift,' which you then used to frame me.” 

“Hold on. Midnight, listen to me.” Tinker Bell struggled in her grip again. Midnight barred her teeth, unrelenting. 

“You’re not going anywhere, you bratty little pixie, until you tell me the truth. I wanna hear you say it to my face.” 

“What did I frame you for? Midnight, you were the last fairy I wanted to cross paths with tonight. I came here with my friends. I didn’t do this, I’m serious.” 

“You are _such_ a liar.” Midnight shook her head, scoffing in disbelief. “I shouldn’t have listened to a word they said, you were behind this the entire time.” 

“Wait, Fawn and Vidia talked to you? What did they say?” 

Tink couldn’t help but express her curiosity. She wanted to know if they’d said anything about her. Fawn usually kept her mouth shut, but Vidia was known to be quite a heavy gossip, and a rather strong social influence on those around her. 

Midnight gave her a pitying look. 

“They didn’t seem too fond of you, last I checked. To be honest, you might want to reconsider your entire relationship with them. But I don’t blame them. Fairies like you always always hog the spotlight, trying to outshine everybody else. It's starting to get annoying." 

_This_ was the message Midnight was forcing her to listen to that just couldn’t wait until . . . literally any other time? A time Tinker Bell wasn’t _trying_ to forget about her problems for just one night? 

“Midnight, I don’t care what you have to say about me or my friends. But I know they would never go behind my back like that, unless they had a really good reason. Maybe they _did_ frame you for something. Last I checked, my friends weren’t exactly your number one cheerleaders. I had nothing to do with this, but you know what? I think if they _had_ asked me about it beforehand, I would’ve said yes.” 

Midnight’s eyes widened. She loosened her grip on Tink and pulled up a cup of bright pink punch out from behind her back, glaring coldly. 

“You have some nerve, talking to me like that after everything you’ve pulled tonight. You are so disrespectful to your friends and everyone around you it’s not even funny. The fact you still have any at all is a wonder. The only fairies who could possibly be friends with you are the ones who have no independent thinking of their own. Who are so stuck faithfully following you, blind to your manipulation, that they don't see how much of a fake you are." 

Tink raised a hand to push Midnight away, furrowing her brows, but before she could reach her, Midnight had dumped the entire glass of punch directly over Tink’s head. The ice cold liquid splashed all over her skin as it spilled down her face and chest. She flinched from the intensity of it. The liquid coated the entire front of her dress, now soaking wet. 

The pungent punch stung her eyes sharply, and she squeezed them shut. 

She spat out the strong, bitter substance and pawed at her face to rub the stinging liquid out of her eyes. Her hair was dripping wet. A thin, sticky layer of punch dried on her chest, soaking the material of her dress even closer in her skin. 

“What was _that_ for?” she exclaimed, shaking her arms to rid herself of the access liquid that had spilled down her front. 

Midnight let go of her and pulled back, smirking openly. She put a hand on her hip and threw the empty glass to the ground. 

“What is your _problem?”_ Tinker Bell shook more punch off herself, rubbing it down her shoulders even though she knew it would only make her hands even stickier later. 

“My problem? I don’t have a problem,” Midnight argued lightly, crossing her arms. “Did you _really_ think getting me kicked out of the ball was going to get in the way of strengthening my relationship with Terence tonight?” 

“A couple things,” Tink said hotly, pulling some fallen, flat, wet hair behind her ears so she could see Midnight better. 

“First of all, I don’t go out of my way to sabotage fairies; that's more your thing. When I want something, I go after it myself." Tink stood up taller. "What do _you_ do in your spare time when you're not working at the depot bossing everyone around and acting like you own it?" 

Midnight's face flared with anger. She took a step closer. "You don't know me, or anything about my life. So don't pretend you do. And stop acting like you're better than me just because Terence chose you first. He doesn't care about you anymore. You need to let him go." 

Tink's eyes widened. She shook her head, flabbergasted. "This . . . Had _nothing_ to do with Terence, actually. I was saying that since you boss everybody around, and that it's so innately engraved in your personality, for you to stand there and call me bossy makes you a hypocrite." 

Midnight kicked the fallen glass of alcohol towards the neighboring wall. It hit the wood with a soft clatter before stilling, but it did not break. 

“But I _won_ tonight." Midnight stood up straighter, smiling. "You lost." 

“That’s my entire point, Midnight,” Tink said with barely contained rage. “You already won. You already got everything you wanted. So why would I go out of my way to wreck your night? I bet you feel really good about yourself now, though, don’t you?" 

“At least I actually treat the fairies in my life with _some_ level of basic respect,” Midnight said, furrowing her brows at Tink. 

“You, on the other hand, are so rude to the ones in yours, like you’re holding onto some collective, irrevocable anger at the world, that the fairies in your life can’t do anything about it for you. So you just push them all away until they get tired of you and leave until there's no one left to listen to your criticism." 

_“You’re_ the one who uses fairies for your own personal benefit.” Tink stepped tensely forward toward the other fairy. “You don’t care about anyone’s feelings at all, especially not Terence’s. You think you can just parade around Pixie Hollow treating fairies like that and thinking they won’t notice? Eventually your true colors will show themselves." 

“You don’t have a clue about my feelings _or_ Terence’s.” Midnight placed some more distance between them, tucking a stray strand of black hair behind her ear. “You may think you know him well, but it doesn’t matter anymore how much you had him under your spell. You betrayed him beyond repair, so now your chance is over.” 

After one last patronizing smile she flew away without another word.

Tink’s face fell from its phlegmatic front, and she wrapped her arms around herself tightly as she shivered. She had never felt lower in her life, not even when she’d forced herself to push Terence away that day he’d flown to her house. 

She had to accept the reality that Terence saw more in Midnight than he ever had in her. There was no possible way he’d hear her side again. Not after how destructively she’d exploded on him last time. She had ruined any chances of patching things up with him.


	18. 18

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Terence figures stuff out in this one

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've been MIA for a while cause of school, but the semester's wrapping up so I've got a little more time on my hands. This story's almost finished

Fawn glanced at Vidia nervously as one would a ticking time bomb. She knew the other fairy noticed, but neither spoke a word. She could tell the Azure situation had affected her friend deeply, but she was unsure of how to console her. 

Fawn was the only fairy out of the bunch who had never had a boy problem, or any boy for that matter. 

She preferred it that way. 

“Fawn, is there something you’d like to say? Or are you going to keep looking at me like my wings fell off?” 

The fairy startled, mainly from the other’s harsh tone. 

“Because as much as I like your eyes on me, Fawn, I’d rather you direct your pity literally anywhere else.” 

“I’m worried. About you.” 

“Why?” 

Vidia’s full attention was on her now. Fawn squirmed. 

“Because . . . Because you seem . . . I don’t know. Like, you still wanted to reason with Azure even when he was in that state.” 

“If he can reason with the bottle, he can reason with me.” 

“Call that reasonable?” 

Vidia pursed her lips and crossed her arms. 

“Mhm.” Fawn nodded matter-of-factly. 

“What’s your point?” 

“You need to either let him go, or admit you still have feelings for him.” 

“Feelings?” Vidia scoffed darkly, as though someone had accused her of a heinous crime. In a lot of ways, it was a crime to love. It tattered the finest quilt of hope. 

“I don’t love him, Fawn. Never have.” 

“I don’t believe you.” 

“And I don’t need to entertain this ridiculous conversation.” 

Vidia turned around and began walking away, but Fawn wasn’t ready to give up that easily. 

“Wait!” 

Vidia did not wait. 

“Who says you need to entertain anything? Maybe you need to stop trying so hard to make everyone like you, Vidia.” 

That got her. 

Her eyes were like ice as she swiveled back around, approaching Fawn very slowly. As a predator would his prey. 

“What did you say? It’s loud in here. I might have heard you wrong.” 

Vidia had extended her a chance. Fawn did not accept. 

“I said maybe if you stopped getting people to like you so much, you’d be . . .” Her heart hammered in her chest. “You’d be happy with yourself.” 

Vidia’s eyes temporarily widened. Her guard was down. But then almost immediately her gaze morphed back into one of contempt, lips curled in disgust. 

“What do  _ you _ know about men, or anything related to love for that matter, Fawn?” Vidia was a ball of raging fire, growing larger. Soon she was going to burn Fawn alive. “All you do is stand around and give us advice you’d never take yourself!” 

“At least I know how to let someone in. You’d rather block everybody out and then act like it’s not your fault you’re alone.” 

Vidia was speechless. 

“Yeah. But what do I know about love, right?” 

Fawn flew away, reasoning in her angered state it’d be best to let Vidia stew. 

. . . 

Midnight scooped herself another glass of the punch. If she was going to be framed for it, she’d be damned if she didn’t enjoy it as much as she could. 

Once she had her cup in hand she made her way back to Terence, who was waiting as promised at a grotto adorned with ivy and moss. 

“What did the Queen want with you?” he asked, sounding more curious than glad to see her again. 

“Um . . .” She blinked a few times to mask her disappointment. “It was nothing . . . I, um . . .” 

“You what?” 

“She thinks I did something. To the punch.” 

“Well, did you?” 

“Of course not!” 

“Okay, then what’s the problem?” 

“Somebody . . . They . . . Those  _ wicked _ fairies.” 

“What wicked fairies?” 

“Vidia, and Fawn, and Tinker Bell . . . The whole lot of them, really, disgust me. Thieving, lying rascals trying to steal this ball right out from underneath me.” 

Terence cocked an eyebrow. “What are you talking about?” 

“I- They-” Midnight made gestures with her hands, balling them into fists, feeling her frustration pile up. “They  _ framed _ me.” 

“How did they frame you?” 

“By telling the Queen I spiked the punch!” 

“But I don’t understand. How can this be? You only had one vial, and we shared it. I can come with you and tell the Queen that right now.” 

“She thinks I had other vials that I threw  _ away,” _ Midnight all but wailed. “Because that makes so much sense.” 

“Okay, calm down. Just calm down. We will figure this out.” Terence placed a comforting hand on her shoulder. Midnight felt oddly undeserving of the touch, but enjoyed it anyway. This was what she’d wanted, after all. 

“It’s too late,” said Midnight. “The Queen doesn’t trust me anymore.” 

“First of all, where’d you get that vial from?” Terence asked, removing his hand. 

“Vidia and Fawn.” 

“Vidia and Fawn gave this to you?” he asked, astonished. 

“They were so nice about it, too,” Midnight growled, snatching the empty vial back from Terence and putting it in her satchel. “Little did I know. They were just pawns in Tinker Bell’s game.” 

“Wait, Tink? What does she have to do with this?” 

“This was her entire plan!” 

“What plan?” 

Midnight groaned, and face-palmed. Terence wasn’t going to make this easy for her, was he. 

She drew in a deep breath, and straightened out her expression. She tried to keep her tone as light as possible. 

“Tink had a plan to frame me for spiking the punch. It worked, because Queen Clarion just kicked me out of the ball.” 

“She kicked you out?” 

Midnight could have collapsed.  _ How many questions could this damn fairy ask? _

She sighed. “Yes. Yes, Terence, she did.” 

“That’s absurd. You obviously didn’t spike the punch. I’ve been with you this entire time.” 

“Right. We know that.  _ She _ doesn’t.” 

“So . . . are you going to leave?” 

Midnight scoffed.  _ This boy _ . 

“Do you want me to leave?” 

“Do I- No, no, Midnight! Of course I don’t.” 

“Okay,” she said, satisfied for now, flattening out her dress. “Good.” 

“But I’m still confused,” said Terence. “What is going on, here?” 

“Well, Tinker Bell schemed for me to get kicked out, by having her little minions deliver me the vile under the guise of friendship. I’m surprised Vidia’s working for her, though. She always flaps to the beat of her own bird.” 

“Wait,  _ working _ for her? Midnight, you sound crazy! This doesn’t sound like something Tinker Bell would do.” 

“It’s  _ exactly _ something Tinker Bell would do.” 

“What makes you say that? What has she ever done to you that would cause you to think that?” 

Midnight pursed her lips. He had gotten her, there. 

“Uhh . . .” 

“How do we know Tink had anything to do with it at all? How do we know this isn’t another one of Vidia’s tricks? She seems way more likely to do something like this than Tink.” 

“But what does Vidia have against me?” Midnight argued. “She hardly knows me.” 

“Vidia has something against everyone,” Terence said with a shrug. “She had something against me before we even talked. At first I thought it was her resting face. When I confronted her about it, she told me she thought I was too soft for a man. It hurt my feelings.” 

“Terence, you are too soft. That’s why I like you.” 

His cheeks colored a nice shade of pomegranate. “Well, thank you.” 

“I know this may seem like out of Tink’s reach to you,” continued Midnight, “but look at how she’s treated you lately. You were nothing but kind to her, and she threw you under the hawk. Who’s to say she doesn’t have it out for me as well, seeing as we came here together?” 

“I just don’t think this is-” 

“You’re not ready to  _ accept. _ That this is something she would do.” 

Midnight’s tone changed, and she looked at him with more seriousness than before. “Terence, I’m going to be honest with you. I think she had you so wrapped around her little thumb that you couldn’t tell left from right.” 

Terence cocked an eyebrow. “What does that even mean?” 

“You l- You lo-  _ Ahem.” _ Midnight could not physically speak. 

“I . . .” Terence gestured for her to go on, but Midnight decided to drop the issue. 

“Whether Tinker Bell was involved or not, her friends framed me. She’s a liar and a manipulator who hangs around lying, manipulative fairies. It’s no wonder she doesn’t see you for who you really are.” 

“How do you see me?” asked Terence. 

Midnight hummed. “I see a strong, handsome sparrowman. Who finally stuck up to the fairy who took him for granted, and who tried to destroy his worth.” 

Terence took a step closer to her, smiling softly. Midnight’s breath caught in her throat. 

“You mean that?” 

“Every word.” 

Another step. Midnight’s heart hammered away. It was now or never. She leaned in, and to her pleasure he followed suit. A thrill of adrenaline surged through her. She closed her eyes, but contact to her lips never came. 

She opened her eyes back up, and Terence was no longer close to her, no longer wearing that smile. Midnight smushed her tongue into the roof of her mouth and pressed  _ hard _ . 

“How did she find out we were going? How did she know? And why didn’t she talk to me about it first?” 

“W-What?” Midnight could not comprehend the switch of events. Moments ago, Terence had been about to kiss her. She felt utterly humiliated. 

“She just . . . Blew up!” Terence gestured wildly with his hands. 

“Well . . . That’s in the past now,” Midnight said carefully. “We’re here now, and she’s off doing god knows what with god knows whom. Let’s just forget about her, Terence.” 

“The only way could’ve found out was by listening in,” Terence continued animatedly, not even listening to his counterpart. “I didn’t tell her; you certainly didn’t tell her. That’s the only way.” 

Terence realized that if Tink had listened in, it would have been after their fight. Was that what kept her from apologizing? 

“Even if she did, who cares?” asked Midnight. “That just makes her a giant eavesdropper.” 

“What if she was going to apologize to me?” Terence asked quietly. 

“Apologize!” Midnight cackled, clutching her stomach. “That fairy doesn’t have an apologetic bone in her body.” 

“She’s stubborn; that’s for sure,” Terence agreed, feeling his chest surge with warmth. As annoying as it could be, it was a part of who she was. 

“She even had the nerve to show her face at the depot the other day in her bandages and hospital gown,” Midnight exclaimed, laughter still escaping her. “Pathetic little thing couldn’t even be bothered to put on a decent change of clothes. She probably just wanted to hammer the nail on the wall that you were wrong about whatever it was you were arguing about. Wait . . . What was it you were arguing about, again?” 

It hit Terence like a freight train. 

She had broken out of the hospital. Just to see him. It didn’t matter why.  _ She had broken out of the hospital to see him.  _

“Wait, why’d she break out?” he asked Midnight urgently. 

“I don’t know,” Midnight shrugged. “Said she wanted to tell you something, but as soon as I let her know you were my date to the ball, she changed her mind.” 

“So you  _ did _ tell her we were going together?”

“Only the second time; not the first. That’s what I’m still confused about.” 

Was that why he hadn’t heard from Tink, so much as a simple  _ I’m sorry?  _ He hadn’t been  _ expecting _ one, but it wouldn’t have hurt. 

Midnight had cemented Tink’s suspicion that he had lied to her about the ball. 

“Midnight . . . What did Tink want to tell me?” he asked her. 

Midnight looked around the room before shaking her head. “I wish I could tell you,” she said earnestly. “The poor thing was in such a state. I could barely understand a word she was saying. Clearly she was in no right way to be coming to the depot to harass you.” 

“Harass me.” Terence furrowed his eyebrows at the fairy. “Midnight, she was coming to  _ apologize _ to me.” 

He spun around and began walking away. 

“Wait, Terence!” Midnight tugged on the back of his shirt. Terence turned around. 

_ “What.”  _

“I- I- I was only trying to do what’s best for you. You can do _ so  _ much better than her. When will you see that?” 

“That’s not for you to decide, Midnight. This thing-” He gestured with his hands again, “is over.” 

Without another word or even waiting for a response he flew away, faster than she’d be able to catch him. He flew to the other side of the ball, on his way out. The only fairy he wanted to see was probably no longer here. He was almost home free when he was flagged down by Flint and company. 

“Terence!” 

He sighed deeply, and flew down to greet the men. Bolt glared at him coldly with his bandages wrapped around his injured nose. 

“You’re flying solo,” Stone commented. 

“So are you.” 

The other sparrowmen, minus Bolt, chuckled in response. 

“Where’s Midnight?” 

“Midnight was a mistake.” 

“Why?” 

“She’s not the one for me. If any of you want to ask her for a dance, she’s over by the grotto.” 

All three fairies made to fly, when Terence said,  _ “One  _ of you.” 

The three sparrowmen awkwardly glanced at one another. 

“I’m injured,” Bolt said after a moment of silence. “The rest of you can fuck off.” 

Another moment of silence. 

“Who says you get to be the one to see her?” asked Flint. “Last time we went to one of these, you danced with two fairies, and I zero.” 

“Yeah, and whose fault is that?” Bolt retaliated. Before long the three sparrowmen had gotten themselves into a full fledged argument. 

“I’ll leave you to it,” Terence said casually before flying off into the twinkling night sky. He decided it best not to tell them that Midnight had just gotten kicked out and would probably be leaving shortly. 


	19. 19

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Story's conclusion

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I can't believe this is finally it, guys. Thanks for being such good sports

Fawn found Vidia off in a distant corner, leaning against a wall and gulping down a glass of punch. 

Vidia’s face soured when she landed. Fawn took a deep breath and willed herself for this potentially unpleasant conversation. 

“I’m sorry.” 

Vidia scoffed. “I don’t do apologies.” 

“Vidia, I said I’m  _ sorry.”  _

“For what. Telling me I only act nice to further my own agenda.” 

“I didn’t say that.” 

“You may as well have.” 

“I didn’t mean it. I was angry because you struck a nerve. You’re right. I’m always everybody else’s shoulder to cry on and it  _ sucks.”  _

Vidia’s gaze softened. 

“I don’t like talking about it because I hate pity, but it bothers me. And if I say anything about it, I’m suddenly insincere.” 

“You’re not insincere, Fawn.” 

Fawn shook her head. “What am I saying. You don’t know the first thing about sincerity, Vidia.” 

“I thought this was supposed to be an apology?”

“I’m doing it again, aren’t I.” 

“Yes.” 

“Well . . .” Fawn sighed. “Alright. I take that back, too. I think you’re a lot more sincere than you let on.” 

“Gee. Thanks. Now that I got the official Fawn Stamp of Approval, I can go tell everyone how sincere I am.” 

“Could do without the sarcasm.” 

“Could do without the half-assed apology.” 

Fawn sighed. This was where most conversations with Vidia went that were about anything important: nowhere. 

“Look. I didn’t-”

“Listen. For a second.” Vidia took a step closer to the animal fairy, her drink now empty. 

“I didn’t get angry because you were speaking out of place. I was angry because . . . because . . . because you were right.” She immediately groaned, facepalming. “Fuck!” 

Now Fawn was confused. Vidia never folded. She always played to her last chip, but that was exactly it; she never came close to running out because she could call everyone’s bluff a mile away. 

Vidia never admitted defeat. 

“About what?” Fawn tested. 

That earned her a glare. “Do you really need me to spell it out for you? Is your memory really that poor?” 

She deserved that. “Okay, fine. I know.” 

“I know you know.” 

“Okay.” 

“Okay.” 

A simmering silence, and then, 

“I’m still sorry for saying it when you were upset. It wasn’t the right place.” 

“Fawn, you need to learn to stop apologizing when fairies get upset with you for telling the truth. I thought you had stronger wings than that.” 

“I-” 

“Coming to me and apologizing for trying to get through to me is weak.” 

Fawn was flabbergasted. “Vidia, I-” 

“You acted like what you said was rude, when we both know you actually meant it. Apologies are for mistakes. Do you think it was a mistake, telling me what you did?” 

Fawn didn’t have to think. “No . . .” 

“So why are you coming to me and apologizing?”

“Because you’re my friend, and I made you upset.” 

“Friends make each other upset sometimes. It’s not a big deal.” 

“It is a big deal.”

“Not to me it isn’t,” Vidia said boredly. “Now can we move on, already? This is ancient history.” 

“You’re really letting this go that easily?” 

“And you really aren’t.” 

“Because I hurt you, and I’m s-” 

“Don’t you say it.” 

“Am I not allowed to apologize to my friend for making her upset?” Fawn exclaimed, throwing her hands up in exasperation. 

“No! Because you already admitted you were telling the truth and didn’t think it was a mistake. That by definition means you aren’t sorry.” 

“You’re the one that told me I shouldn’t be sorry!” 

“Because I know you’re not, because there’s nothing to be sorry for! Can we just drop this, please?” 

Fawn was going to reply, but she stopped at the look on Vidia’s face. She was flat all over, lips void of any downward curve, but there was something in her eyes that cried out in pain. 

“Hiya, Sugarplum!” exclaimed a familiar voice, startling Fawn. She turned around to see Rosetta, Clove, Silvermist, Amethyst, Iridessa and Sage all flying toward them. They landed and Fawn whipped back around to Vidia, who had already straightened her posture and plastered on a smile that was just convincing enough to the unsuspecting eye. 

“Hey guys!” Vidia greeted in a tone that very clearly told Fawn  _ don’t you dare _ . 

“Just because you single birds don’t have dates doesn’t mean you can’t dance,” said Silvermist as she did a little shake, who by the looks of it had already had enough to drink. 

“Yeah, come dance with us, guys,” encouraged Amethyst. “You don’t wanna be stuck in this corner all night.” 

“I for one would  _ love _ to,” said Vidia, casting Fawn another look as the group began to fly back toward the floor. Fawn had no choice but to, as usual, follow. 

Out on the floor, the pairs partnered up and left Fawn and Vidia to sway to the beat solo. Fawn felt a surge of jealousy go through her as she watched each couple enjoy themself, and she kept glancing at Vidia. But Vidia was pointedly avoiding her. Fawn didn’t know how much more of this she could take. 

Suddenly, Opal marched up to Vidia. She wore a face of white-hot rage. Before Fawn could warn her, Opal flew straight to Vidia and smacked her square across the jaw. 

Neighbouring fairies gasped in horror and stopped dancing as the music continued to play, and Vidia cried out in pain, clutching her cheek. 

“What the hell was  _ that _ ?” 

“That was for Azure, you boyfriend-stealing  _ slut.” _

Rosetta gasped. “Don’t you talk about her that way! Just what in the name of Mother Dove’s first laid do you think you’re doin?” 

“You slept with him, didn’t you,” Opal seethed, refusing to back down. 

“Hey, hey, you need to take it down a few notches,” Clove said, stepping closer to Opal. 

“Get away from me,” Opal said coldly. 

“How long, Vidia. How long have you been sleeping with my boyfriend.” 

“I didn’t sleep with your- Ow, god  _ damnit.” _

Fawn felt anger boiling deep inside her. A protectiveness she’d never known before churned through her insides, seeping deep into the marrow of her bones. 

“Get away from her, Opal,” she said sternly, stepping toward the brunette. “Now.” 

“Get lost, squirrel chaser.” 

“Opal,” said Vidia, “I didn’t sleep with your fucking boyfriend. Do you really think I’d sink that low? That’s the real insult here.” 

“Then tell me why he just broke up with me.” 

Vidia chuckled in shock.  _ “That _ is not my problem, sweetie.” 

Fawn took another step closer, fists shaking at her sides. Opal must have sensed something, because she backed away. 

“Opal, I’m going to give you five seconds to scram before-” 

“Before you’ll what? Tell on me to Queen Clarion?” 

“Opal, get out of here,” said Sage. “I’m serious. You can’t hit our friend. Go. We don’t give a fuck about your stupid, cheating boyfriend.” 

“He literally cheated on me with you, and you still took him,” said Vidia. “You knew what you were signing up for.” 

Opal glared icily before storming off. 

Fawn and Vidia exchanged a glance. 

“You okay, honey?” Rosetta asked. 

“Don’t ‘honey’ me, I’m good,” said Vidia, rubbing her cheek. Then she turned to Fawn. “You didn’t have to do that.” 

“Do what?” 

“You know what. Stick up for me. After the way I was talking to you earlier.” 

Fawn smiled softly. “Ancient history. That’s what friends are for.” 

Vidia smirked. Fawn realized it was the best she was gonna get. She’d take it. 

______

Tink saw a light coming from her hut as she flew up to the door. Curious, she whipped it open and flew inside. 

It was the flower. 

Its petals were once again perked up with life, and as she peered closer she could see a slight glittery hue around the edges. Perhaps this flower did have some magic to it after all, if it sensed she was having a bad day. She’d have to give Fairy Mo a visit, because she couldn’t explain its sudden decision to glow again. 

“Now it’s time to get this cursed punch off me,” she muttered to herself. 

Once she showered, she felt refreshed and clean. She changed into a soft, green nightgown and slippers. Her damp hair draped down around her shoulders as she combed through it slowly. The events of the night had drained her and she was ready for bed. 

She peered into her reflection, feeling slightly disappointed that Terence hadn’t gotten to see her in her gown. She shouldn’t feel this way, but she couldn’t help it. 

Suddenly, her flower began to glow more brightly. It illuminated the entire room, casting a golden glow that almost made Tink squint her eyes. 

Then came a knock at her door. 

Tink startled, dropping her brush. She slowly flew toward the door, wondering who could be visiting at this hour. And why they weren’t at the dance, having fun. 

She opened the door. 

It was Terence. 

She reeled back. Her heart climbed in her throat. 

“Terence?” 

“Hey, Tink . . .” He sounded shy, unsure of himself. She didn’t like it at all. 

“What are you doing here?” 

“I came to talk to you. About some things.” He peered past her, eyes widening at the noticeable glow. “Wait a minute . . . Is that the flower?” He stepped around her, making a beeline straight for the light. 

“Come on in?” Tink muttered. 

“I haven’t seen it glow like this since we first got together,” he said, and she felt a stab in her abdomen. He and Tink spent a moment looking at it, until Tink grew bored and flew away. She saw no point in admiring the flower if there was nobody to share it with. 

Terence sat at her table, bouncing his knee rapidly beneath the surface. Tink put some tea on for him, and insecurely brushed through her hair. She never had it down with company. 

“Tink,” Terence chuckled. “You don’t have to entertain me. I came out of nowhere, and you look like you could fall asleep at any minute. So it’s alright. I don’t need tea or anything.” 

“It’s already on the pot.” Tink fished through her cabinet for two mugs. 

Terence stood up and came behind her, placing a hand over hers.  _ “Tink.”  _

She finally stopped, turning around to face him. He was awfully close. She felt her heart rate picking up again. 

He seemed to notice their closeness, for he backed up, rather quickly. “Sorry . . .” he said awkwardly. “Kinda a force of habit.” 

“Terence.” She shook her head. “What are you doing here?” 

“We need to talk. Can we sit? Please?” 

Tink sighed and allowed herself to be led to the table. They took seats opposite of each other. 

“Thought you were with Midnight.” 

“I shouldn’t have ever agreed to go with her.” 

“Are you saying that because you want something, or because you actually mean it?” 

“Tink, why does everything have to be a third degree with you, huh?” Terence exclaimed, taking her aback. “Here I am trying to apologize, and you’re making it all about Midnight.” 

“You said you wanted to talk. You didn’t say you wanted to apologize.” 

Terence’s head fell into the palm of his hand. “It’s implied.” 

“Well, it wasn’t to me.” 

“Clearly not.” 

They were right back where they started. 

“Terence, I feel like we argue too much,” Tink said, attempting to take a stab at the truth. 

Terence chuckled mirthlessly, saying nothing. 

“Well?” Tink pressed. “You clearly came for a reason. What is it?” 

Terence remained silent, frustrating her. 

“You can either sit there and remain silent or tell me what’s really going on. Clearly something happened with Midnight, and clearly it was important enough to bring you here otherwise you’d still be at the ball having fun with your friends.” 

“Tink . . .” Terence shook his head again. “Can’t you see? I can’t have fun at the ball. Not without you.” 

Tink’s eyes widened. Terence stood up from his chair, approaching her slowly. 

“I should have never listened to her, Tink. I should have never let her get in my head. What we had was . . . special. And I threw it away.” 

“Terence . . .” she pleaded, feeling a pang in her chest. “Don’t say that. I messed up, too. I assumed things about you without talking to you about it first. If anything this whole thing’s my fault.” 

“It’s not about blame.” Terence took her hands in his. Tink felt her pulse uptick, felt time still all around her. There was nothing in the entire universe except for her and Terence in that room. He knelt before her, cupping her hands, a look in his eyes she’d never seen before. 

“Tink,” he said softly, so softly. 

She gulped, felt herself nodding, needing him to speak more. 

“Do you want to be with me?” 

The question hung in the air between them, quiet as a mouse. She felt their air mix as the desperation in his eyes pleaded silently with her. Wide as saucers, he looked genuinely afraid of what she would say. 

She moved closer to him, took a hand and ran it through his soft, blonde hair. “Yes,” she whispered. 

He wasted no time in pressing his mouth against hers in a heated kiss, cupping her cheeks and pulling her impossibly close. She wrapped her arms around his neck and breathed deeply through her nose as the kiss left her breathless and tingly. She needed more of him like she needed air. 

Terence sported a soft smile. “I missed you,” he said, caressing her face as though he couldn’t believe she were real, “so much.” 

She didn’t want to tell him it physically hurt her to be without him. “Let’s never do that again,” she agreed. 

Suddenly the room was cast in a bright, yellow glow. Tink and Terence broke apart, panting, and looked at the flower, which had begun elevating and casting even more light. Sparkles of pink and purple flew from its petals, which were completely open and alive as ever. 

“Terence, the flower!” 

“It’s almost like it . . .” He gasped. “That’s it. That  _ has _ to be it.” 

_ “What?”  _

“Tink, there’s something I need to tell you.” 

“Wait a minute. Me first.” 

She’d been holding it in far too long, and life was far too short. 

“Okay, go ahead.” 

She cleared her throat, and then, “I love you, Terence.” 

He froze. For half an instant, she worried she’d gone too far, scared him off. 

_ You’ve really done it now, you big, blithering- _

Suddenly she was being tackled to the floor, chair and all, and enveloped in a big hug. She gasped, allowing herself to enjoy the warm sensation of Terence’s arms. 

“I love you,” she said again, pecking him on the lips. 

“Tink.” He looked at her with pure adoration. He leered over her, a dopey grin on his face. “I love you, too.” 

They held onto each other tightly and didn’t let go for a long time. 

The flower released a shower of sparkles, raining down the entire room. 

As their relationship went on, Tink would often look back at this night, this whole series of events, really, and wonder why it took her so long to discover how Terence felt when the answer was right in front of her. Why they had to spell everything out to each other instead of simply just figuring it out. Perhaps she’d never fully know the answer. But the truth was, they were two really stubborn fairies, so that probably played a large role. 

Besides, it didn’t matter how other fairies in love found their way. It mattered how she and Terence found their own. 

They eventually brought the flower back to Fairy Mo. 

“Well, look at you two lovebirds!” he exclaimed at the pair, who stood in his shop with matching grins, hand in hand. “Ya figured it out. Took ya long enough.” 

“Fairy Mo,” said Tink, “we’d like to return this flower. We want to see other couples experience its magic the same way we did.” 

Fairy Mo’s mouth formed the shape of an O, and his thick eyebrows lifted up off his face. “Are you sure, Tinker Bell? This flower’s rare, one of a kind. You’re not going to find another one of these in a million-” 

“We’re sure,” Terence affirmed. 

Tink extended the glowing flower to Fairy Mo. 

“It’s just going to sit on the shelves, not glowing for who knows how long,” Fairy Mo said. 

“Someone will find it eventually,” Tink reasoned. “And when they do, they’ll discover the life changing secret of its magic.” 

“If you say so,” Fairy Mo said, hesitantly taking the flower from Tinker Bell’s outstretched hand. He bid the fairies goodbye, and they were well on their way. 

He knew true love in the sense that Tinker Bell and Terence had it was incredibly rare to come by. He’d figure a way to convince Tink to keep that flower, yet. 

“Catch me if you can!” Tink called to her boyfriend, zipping through the meadow under the boiling summer sun. 

He laughed, racing after her. It was just another beautiful day in Pixie Hollow. A beautiful day to be in love. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aaaaaaaand that's a wrap. Thank you for all your kind comments


End file.
